The Procurer
by queequeg111
Summary: Sookie is raised in the Fae Realm, after her parents and brother are killed by the Water Fairy. Now, because of a promise Niall made years ago, she has to infiltrate the Vamps of Area 5 to find out why the Sheriff has been consorting with Breandan. What could possibly go wrong? *smirk Action, future lemons AU/OOC Rated M fo' sho!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Oh. Em. Geeeeee! I cannot believe this story came from out of nowhere. I was literally on a pee break from my other story and this thing just diarrhead itself into my brain. So, this is totally different for me, this bizarro new universe I made up and writing in first person. Sorry, if you notice me lapse out of wrong tense (she/me/I) and sorry for any typos and shenanigans, I have no beta and it's late. I am really hoping I don't screw myself for the path of the rest of the story with this first chapter. I change course a lot, so we'll see. Anyoo-thanks for following along, let me know what you think. Oh and this is rated M for potty mouth and later lemon time, so you know what to do if you don't like that kind of thing. Charlain-adaina-dingdong owns all the familiar characters. Love you *blows air kisses and plays spoons on one knee while tweedling my moustache.**

Chapter 1

"Harder, Sookie!"

"I'm trying, jackass! Stop moving around so much!"

"Well, if you can't make me stop, then it's pretty clear you suck. Why am I even bothering?" Kvelin dropped his hands from their guarding position, removed his mouth guard and turned a sweaty back to me. Shaking his head in disappointment, "All that training, wasted..."

I flew at him, intending to take him by surprise, but of course, that was a FAIL. He was ready for me, as usual. He pushed me off, tossing me like a rag doll against the far wall of the gym. I didn't let that deter me, set him in my sights, threw myself toward him in a somersault, then popped away only to pop back behind him, where I swept his legs out from under him. Pointing my sword at his neck, "You were saying?"

He smirked at me, then disappeared, but I anticipated his sudden appearance behind me and leapt straight up, narrowly avoiding his own leg sweep. On my way down I gave him an elbow to the gut and a head butt, effectively ending this round.

Shaking his head, looking a little dazed I thought, with no small amount of cockiness, "Fuck. About time. But why is it, every time you finally best me, it's only when I've driven you to your boiling point with anger?"

"What can I say?" I snarked at him, and threw a water bottle at his head at 30 miles an hour, which, he of course, caught. "I need a little fire in my loins to get me going." I waggled my eyebrows at him and took a chug of my own water, wiping the sweat from my forehead.

"If only I knew." He said, only half joking. "Not for lack of trying, Sookie."

I immediately felt bad for teasing him that way. Poor guy-he had definitely tried. Again and again. He just didn't get the home fires burning, so to speak. I was beyond thinking something was broken in me because of it. He was about 6'2", blonde and blue-eyed and built like a badass. Every woman within a ten mile radius of his gaze fell at his feet.

I recalled the first moment I saw him, when Great-Grandfather had sent me to train with him. Initially like most women with a pulse, I was in awe of his raw sex appeal. But it ended there. He somehow fell into some brotherly friend zone and it was over. I even forced the issue and did finally give in to his repeated requests for a date. I tried to get into the make out session that followed, I really did. God knows he was a really good kisser. Probably a phenomenal one, if I had felt anything. But I didn't.

Thinking about it now, a blush crept into my cheeks. "Sorry, Kvelin."

He waved a hand at me and faked a hurt look. "It's fine, Sookie. I know my place in life. Just a lowly Britlingen, training the Great Princess Brigant-"

I cut him off with a quickness "-Foof! Don't even start that shit! Because I sooo act like a pretty little princess-"

He cut me off now "-I never said pretty." He quickly dodged the dagger I threw at him. He bent over to pull it out of the floor where he'd been sitting seconds earlier.

"See? Anger. It's what brings out your inner warrior when you fight. So, I guess when the real deal hits and you have to defend yourself or your family or kingdom, you better have a shit ton of angry thoughts stashed away. If you plan on surviving, I mean. Otherwise, you can resign yourself to be some Supe slave whore, or even better, drained on the spot by some vampire asshole, all cracked up on your smell."

I shot him a look that could melt stone. The truth hurt. Before I could fire off another snarky retort, we were interrupted.

"Hey flunkies, fighting again?" Came the always chipper, always obnoxiously sing-song voice.

I sighed, though I was glad to see my friend and cousin who was, simultaneously, my biggest supporter and torturer. "No, Celighn. Kvelin was just up to his usual douche antics."

"Aww, Sookie. Did he have the audacity to try to talk sense into you, again? Shame, shame Kvelin." She shook her head at him, her flame mop of curls bobbing.

I had to bite my lip at his expression. Lately, whenever she came around, he seemed to turn into mush. Lately meaning ever since two weeks ago, when she had beat my ass and mopped the floor with me in sword practice. Guess we know what floats his boat, I snickered to myself.

"Have something to say there, Lassy?" She was cocking an eyebrow at me, as though, _she_ were the telepath.

"Me? Never." Kvelin snorted. "So, what brings you out to our smelly little piece of the palace, your highness? You here to kick my ass again?" I said, with bite. I might not be the best fighter among the three of us here, but I was very competitive. The fact that my own cousin, though pretty far removed, a princess in her own right, had kicked my butt, in front of witnesses really burned me up. Despite my royal title, I never liked to fall into the royalty stuff. I was just plain old Sookie Stackhouse Brigant.

I considered myself an outsider, though I'd lived here among family, of sorts, longer than in the human realm, for sure. My great-grandfather brought me here after my parents died after the Water Fae killed them. "To protect me", as if I had a choice, at that age. I always thought I might have liked life better being raised human, by my Gran, I thought with sorrow. Niall had let me stay in contact with her all those years, so when she passed last year, I felt a true and deep loss. But, like she used to tell me, I would probably have hated being raised in their world. I was part fae and telepathic and that surely could have been torturous to grow up into. Kids, and adults, sadly, always pick on those that are different. Especially in that back water hole she lived in. Sorry, Gran, no offense, I thought quickly, but that place was filled with nothing but people missing a few chromosomes.

"Sookie...Hello? You there?" Celighn was snapping her fingers at me.

"Sorry, I was thinking...about Gran."

"Aw, there now. She really was a sweet lady and I know you miss her so." How did everything she said sound so damned lovely. It was that Irish brogue. She could tell you to poo in a cup and it would sound like she was singing you a song.

"But, that brings me to why I came down here. Your great grandfather wants to see you."

"Now? But I'm all sweaty."

"Come on now. No sass. He's in his office, so not many will see you. Except for Preston." She leered at me.

"Ugh. No thanks."

She and Kvelin laughed heartily at my discomfort. That guy was like a dog in heat. He never relented. Every time I turned around, and even when I didn't, he was there. Stalking. Even when I had beaten him in practice sparring. Four times. I shivered, thinking of my grandfather's skeevy steward. The only reason he was around was because he was actually decent at his job. Which was good for a male fairy. Most thought they were too good for any menial work, reference my cousin Claude. That and he was the grandchild of some powerful someone or another who Niall owed a favor to. So, he was permanent, but I refused to take his shit.

"Let's get this over with. Same time tomorrow? I asked Kvelin

"Same time, same place kid. It was nice seeing you, Celighn." He mooned at her.

"Maybe I'll have to come out again tomorrow to catch you in a bit o' action, then. Bye now, Kvelin." She winked at him, then waved coyly as we took hands and popped over to see great-grandad.

* * *

*Pop

Niall looked up from his desk at our arrival.

"Granddaughter. You look well. How was your practice? Kvelin is teaching you all there is to know about Their ways of battle, I hope?" He kissed my cheek.

Celighn snorted. What was it with me being surrounded by a bunch of smart asses?

"Yes, Grandfather Niall. How are you?" I asked out of politeness since I already knew he had something weighing very heavily on his mind. While I couldn't read all Supes 100% like I could humans, I could still pick up images and stray thoughts to get a general gist. At least from my family and people around me all the time. Though, the things I was picking up from him made no sense to me.

"I am...fair this day." He ran a hand behind his neck-that was his tell. He always did that when he was dealing with anything stressful.

"What's the matter? I know you're upset. Sit and tell me." I guided him back to his seat and scooted a smaller chair up to face him, while Celighn took the seat further away, across the other side of his desk. Hmm, that was suspicious.

He was quiet for a bit. He absent-mindedly patted my hand in my lap. While I waited, I looked around-no trace of Preston. Whew. A few more minutes of silence.

"Come, Grandfather, out with it. And no Fairy riddles, please."

He smiled at my impatience and audacity. Not many spoke to The Prince with such insolence. Only his grandchildren, and never in public. But he always joked that I was the most impudent of all of his grandchildren and he was going to leave me with my Gran for some discipline "befitting my brattiness". In fact, that's what my cousin, Claude, called me, Your Royal Brattiness.

"Sookie. You know, when your parents and brother were killed, everyone in our world thought you died with them. But Fintan knew you lived. He sent me for you. I came to you, to bring you back here, out of obligation to my son. I did not know you, I had no emotional ties to you. The few Royal Advisers I kept in extreme confidence knew of you, were adamant you not be brought back here. All the dissension about our worlds mixing and hybrids, etc. that was going on at the time...you understand, it did not bode well. When I arrived, you were in Adele's care. She did not want me to take you and you definitely did not want to come with me. I spent hours convincing her why you would be safest with me. Breandan" he practically spit out the name "would have hunt you down tirelessly. You would never have made it to see your next birthday. And you would have not been able to further your powers the way you have here." He trailed off for a moment.

"It's okay, Grandfather, I understand and appreciate what you did bringing me here. I feel honored. Why do you sound apologetic for it?"

"When I brought you here, I'm not sure you remember it, but I had to hide you for a time. We always made it a fun game. Your cousins and I and Muriel cared for you and when it was time to hide, we played hide and seek and other games till you could come out again." I nodded with a small smile, having some vague memories of that time.

"No one knew why a hybrid of our blood would be here, and no one knew where you came from, since Fintan's children and grandchildren had been assumed killed. So, we made up a story about you being a half-blood hybrid on Celighn's side. So you would still be royalty, just not of Fintan's blood, so that hopefully word would not get to Breandon or his minions. Well, that turned out to not be much better of a cover story since you were still of mixed species, but at least we didn't have to worry about him coming after you right away. Your presence still, however, upset many here. Those who were so dismayed, worried it would start an all out war with the Water Fae, that many of them went to The Council. I had to go before them and plead your, our case. I had to tell them of your telepathy, present you as a benefit to us. One we could train for our side."

While that stung, it didn't surprise me all that much. One thing I'd learned in the Supe world, everyone had an angle, nothing was always as it seemed. But I knew there was more he had yet to say.

"After much debate and investigation, I was able to keep you here, obviously, but there was one stipulation."

I steeled myself for whatever was coming next.

"When the time came, you had a duty to serve as an...emissary for us. Or a spy using your telepathy. Or a fighter. Whatever position in which you could most benefit us. I made that promise, back then as I really did not have the emotional ties I now have to you. I felt obligated to help you, but you were still a stranger to me at that time. It was easy to do before I came to love you as the one of my own that you have become. I have never wished so much that I had the power to turn back time and take that promise back."

Ignoring the last few emotional sentences, I chose to stick to the business aspect. "Let me guess. The time has come."

He nodded guiltily. His shoulders slumped a little and he looked like anything but a Prince right now.

I swallowed and took a deep, theoretically, calming breath. Though I did not feel calm. I looked over at Celighn. Her face was neutral, though the guilt was coming off her in waves, too. Great. So, eveyone knew but me.

Before I had too much time to think, I pushed forward. I wanted to know everything I was up against all at once. Through clenched teeth, "What is my...assignment?"

I felt the fear and dread flying at me from both my _dear kin_, "You have to infiltrate the jurisdiction of the Vampire in Area 5."

I stared back at him, my mouth open. "I see. And do what, exactly? Offer myself up as a Vestal Virgin oh and by the way, have any secrets that will help my kinfolk before you fuck and drain me?!" My voice had increasingly gone up several octaves until I reached almost shrieking. I paced. "Why? Why now, why that area, those particular...vampire?" I spat. "What am I to learn? How can I possibly help?"

Niall came to me and tried to touch me, but I shrugged him off and moved further away to continue my pacing. He sighed and sat back down, watching me.

"As you know, factions in the Water Fae are getting restless and spoiling for a fight. Breandan's militant and obsessive ways have driven most of them mad. To the point where they are mere shadows of the race they once were. Though we have never been at full peace with them, many of us, on both sides, respected each other. He has made them lead a Spartan existence, denied them any happiness and those who used to think with clear heads and some sense of reason, are now clouded with hatred and bloodlust. Since most of the Supe world wants nothing to do with our infighting, they have had a hard time building enough force to attack us. Until recently, or so I fear. Sources have told me that he is seeking outside help from one source that puts fear into all of us. He has been seen meeting with the Sheriff of Area 5 in an effort to curry favor, get him involved, or spreading lies, for all we know. We aren't sure. It has not been just one meeting, it's been three. I know this Sheriff enough to know he does not waste time entertaining, out of mere politeness. If he is meeting with him, he wants something from him. Breandan is offering him something, in one way or another, that would make it worth his time to get involved."

The door flung open and in came Claudine, Claude and, fucking joy, Preston.

"Are you okay, Sookie? Preton summoned us when he heard you-"

"Stop!" I held my hand up in a halting gesture. "Sit down and hear what's new in my life, Cousins. It's great-I'm finally fulfilling my destiny: being a Fairy Mata Hari Vampire popsicle for information I may or may not be able to get, before I'm killed by said vampires." You could have heard a mouse fart as my Gran would have said.

They sat down, without a word. Shocker. They probably also knew. "Preston. Get out, or I will kill you where you stand." He slunk out of the room and took up a position on the other side of the door to eavesdrop. I marched over to the door and threw it open to see his shocked face, right before I put my fist in it.

Before I could continue any further, Niall interrupted. "Sookie, enough! Do not take your anger for me out on the boy."

Boy, my ass. If he was old enough to try to peek in on my baths, he was old enough to get his ass beat. But he was right. For right now, my fight was not with this simpering little terd. I gave him a hard look before I slammed the door in his face.

My traitor great-grandfather cleared his throat. Now he was pacing. "Continuing on. This Vampire, I know him. I have fought with him in other Supe wars, if you believe that. He is...an honorable man, for his kind."

I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. My great-grandfather, the Prince Niall Brigant of the Sky Fae, the man who had spent twenty years training me, and having me trained to know my enemies, at which the top of the list contained the all time biggest threat-Vampires!, was telling me he knew one to be honorable. Uhmm...what?

A small smile crept across his face, chagrin, really and he held his hand up. "I know, I know. I have always told you they are our ultimate enemy. They will drain you, rape you without the bat of an eyelash and that is true. Almost all of them would. But as I've said, I have been around long enough to learn that there are a few people in every species of Supe, that I have come to at least respect. He is one. Understand, I couldn't very well train you to the best of your abilities, only to tell you to make sure to look out for the one or two 'good guys', so to speak. Unfortunately, in our world of Fairy versus Vamp, it will always be safer and wiser to kill first, without hesitation. They would never afford you the luxury of getting to know you first, I assure you." He leaned against the desk. He looked tired. And that was rare.

"But back to the Sheriff. I am not saying trust him implicitly. I am saying he is reputable enough to wonder why he is consorting with the likes of Breandan. And that, my dear, is where I, no, we need your help. Whether that be through telepathy, torture, your feminine wiles-it does not matter how. We just need to know if Breandan is planning an attack and if the Vampire intends to assist him. Please, Sookie" his eyes implored, as he came over to grab my hands, "Please know I would go on my own, if I had not made this vow to The Council. I did approach them, asking for a reprieve, that I or someone else, go in your stead. But as the least fae blood of us all, I was denied my request. They _commanded_ me to send you. I cannot go against them on this."

His voice broke, and as angry, shocked and hurt as I was, I couldn't hate him. That was a long time ago. Who doesn't change and adapt their feelings for another over time? How was he to know any of this would come to pass so soon, or in this manner, or that he would love me as much as he did?

I sighed, feeling most of the anger leave me, at least for the time.

Not sure at all why I asked this next question, or why it even remotely mattered, but I wanted to know this respected enemy that I had to infiltrate. It made it seem more real, more attainable to give him a name. "Grandfather, what is his name, this Sheriff?"

"Eric Northman."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Whew-you guys farking rock! All the favorites, follows, reviews, etc were awesome. I actually am trying to respond to your reviews which is also fun. Sorry if I miss you or if you're signed in as guest, and I can't. Oh, and big ups to nukemlee for pointing out the name fuckery I did in the last chapter. I swapped Fintan's name for Preston's a couple times and she pointed it out for me. Thank you! That gets you an open-mouthed kiss from the Sheriff. I was mortified and had to change it immediately-while I was at work lol,ssshhhh...This is advancing fairly easily for me. As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday here in the States, I may not be able to get the chapters out so quickly. What with all the shameful face-stuffing and ridiculous Black Friday shopping. But I am totally addicted to this story, so I have a feeling, while I am trying to act all tough, like I own the story, in truth, it owns me. Mostly, I just want to get to the fuckhot Viking lol. So, let's cut this shit ao I can get back to the story. Thanks again for all your support. I own nothing, except for the stuff that's mine (clear as mud?). Enjoy, hookahs! *channels Lafayette**

Chapter 2

Though the name initially ran an immediate chill down my spine, I shrugged it off. "Seriously? Eric?" I laughed, but it came out awkward. "I wasn't expecting something so...normal. I thought they had names like Count Vigo von Wilhelm and the like." I joked but no one laughed. Everyone was looking at me in some mixture of guilt, pity, fear. Clearing my throat, "So, this Eric. You said you respect him, yet you want me to torture him to get information from him?"

"I was kind of grasping at straws, my dear. Mostly meaning use any means necessary to find out all you can. There is no way you could overpower him Sookie." He held his hands up before I could get my ire up. "Now, now. Let's just be honest with what we are dealing with here. He is over one thousand years old. In his human life he was a warrior and he definitely has not softened over the millennium. Even I would be overpowered him, if I am very honest with myself. Though I do have magic on my side, so I could have a better chance of disabling him that way. I want to emphasize Sookie, do not put yourself so much at risk, that you may not come back to us. Council be damned! You may be used to procure information, but I will not allow you to die for it! In battle, amongst your family is one thing, but not alone, at the hands of any vampire, respected or not."

I had to smile at his slightly twisted logic. Gran and I had often gotten into debates over this way of thinking. She didn't like me being raised to fight, to defend our kind. It always irked her when I would regale her with my stories of sword and archery practice, sparring with Brittlingens and guards. And over the years, I had known, rather, been trained to know, that while we all were fairly safe at the Palace, that could change any time. And we had soldiers and friends go missing, or worse. They would be sent on a scouting mission or with a treaty to present Breandan in hopes for peace. They either never returned home, or a portion of them would be sent back as his sign of refusal. Once he returned a head on a pike back to Niall, with the treaty pinned into the eye. I cringed recalling that, as I had still been a child and had gone running into his office to show him how good I had gotten at my magic and found that pleasant scene. That had been my first and most resounding lesson of how cruel Breandan could be.

"I know your sword, dagger, archery and fighting skills are very good for your human blood, but vampire, especially this one are extremely strong. If it really came down to a physical face off, do not attempt it. Use your magic. It is strong for the amount of Fae and Brigant blood you have in you, Granddaughter, but outside this realm it will probably dampen greatly. I am hoping your ability to teleport, if nothing else, stays with you. At the first sign of true danger, I want you to come back here-immediately." Again, the twisted logic. They were sending me to the lion's den, but I wasn't supposed to be in too much danger.

To hide my annoyance, I changed the subject. "What is my back story-am I completely human? Do I have any ties to you? Am I a blonde bimbo? Or a naughty librarian? Do I accidentally spill coffee on him at a cafe, or do I write him a parking ticket?" I snarked. Hey, I had to find some kind of humor in this. Otherwise I might cry. My interest was slightly piqued at the thought of playing a role.

"I was thinking you should go to him as a human, with telepathy. But do not tell him you are such. Let him discover it, as if you did not want it to be common knowledge."

"How am I introducing myself to him? Do I bump into him or stalk him till I find an opportune moment to hit on him?"

"He owns a vampire-themed nightclub. I was thinking you could frequent it as a patron. Go often enough and see if you can interest him romantically." I snorted. "Or apply for a job, if they are hiring, which most establishments like that usually are."

Claude suddenly came alive. "That is definitely true! Bars and clubs are in a constant state of looking for good help." He was a partner in a strip club in the human realm. "Maybe you could apply as a bartender. I can show you how to make drinks in a matter of minutes. People always order the same twenty crappy drinks. When all else fails, slap a cherry on it or put some juice in it. Most people are too drunk to notice or too nice to say anything. Especially to a little hotty like you!" He winked at me. "Or you could apply as a dancer."

Ew, that would be a last resort. Everyone around here had zero sense of modesty about their bodies. I don't know if it was my human side making itself known, but I was a total prude compared to them. I didn't love the thought of being the type of dancer I knew he was referring to, unless I absolutely had to. File that thought away for later.

"What about my scent? I know I don't smell as strongly as you all do, but I know I have enough to tip them off, despite any amount of practice I have had selectively masking it, don't you think?" I was proud of all the hard efforts I took, practicing the limited amounts of magical/fae talents I had. The majority of my days was split between physical, mental and magic exercises. Not that there was much else I liked to do. I liked to stay busy.

"I have arranged a spell to place on you that will completely envelope and contain your scent."

"I hope I get to have a practice run to make sure." I muttered mostly to myself. "I do hope the spell won't mask all scent. I would expect them to be suspicious if I literally had no scent." One thing I learned about magic and spells-you had to be very specific and be careful what words you chose when weaving them. You got exactly what you asked for, which could often be dangerous.

He looked at me surprised and impressed that I had thought of that, which meant, he obviously had not.

"That is an excellent point. I will make sure to include it in the spell. Wonderful observation. Despite my anger and despair at having you in this position, I am proud of the job I know you will do."

Sit. Stay. Good dog. I fought my eye roll.

"Seriously, though. I would feel better about this, if I could pop back and forth between realms several times and see if the scent-masking spell worked. And also practiced my magic to see what I could use or not. Will that be a possibility?" Since I had lived in Faery, the only times I had been allowed into the human realm had been when I'd gone to visit my Gran. And Niall had usually done the teleporting, or was there when I did it. We would make occasional trips to her church or the local market. Walmart, they called it. I used to hate those trips. Initially I had been excited just to be allowed out and about and exposed to how the other half lived, but the constant bombardment to my mind had been awful! It literally made me sick the first few times. Once Niall learned of it, he actually made it an exercise for me, to practice shielding and filtering out thoughts. As I matured and my powers grew, I learned I could influence humans, using their own thoughts. For instance, if a man was thinking awful things about his wife, I could take the thoughts and morph them a bit into something more neutral or even positive. Or, I could do the opposite-turn positive or neutral thoughts into negative ones, which I didn't want to do, but Niall made me practice it, just for the sake of knowing I could use it if I had to. We kept that little bit from Gran. Her tender human sensibilities would never have tolerated that.

Great-Grandfather broke my reverie. "Of course, Sookie. I would expect no less."

"Okay, how much time do I have to prepare? When is this all going down?"

"As soon as possible, unfortunately. As I stated, Northman and Breandan have met three times now. If something is coming, it could be any time now and we need to know. Plus, I imagine it will take at least a few days to implant yourself into his life in one way or another."

Was he kidding? "A few days?! I would think it might take weeks or months! I can't just waltz in there, say 'Hi, my name is Sookie' and become his right hand man or his confidant." I had a horrible, sinking feeling suddenly. "Unless-I don't have to become his" gulp "_woman_ or anything, do I?"

I felt the sting of tears and fought them for all I was worth. I could do a lot of things: I would fight him, spy on him, stake him but I would not be anyone's whore for hire. If that was expected, I would walk away right now, leave here for the human realm and take my chances with whatever came at me. It wasn't that I was saving my...womanhood for anyone special, per se. But I sure as hell wasn't going to give it up to some Vamp for the sake of fairy intel.

There were so many things that would complicate my life if I had sex with anyone here. So I chose not to. First of all, fairy men were so vain, it was very hard to feel special when you were around them. They constantly talked and thought only about themselves. Made me wonder if any fairy women ever got the chance to orgasm. Second, I was constantly training-14 hours a day-using my brain and body and magic. It was very taxing, which left little time or energy for courtship. Third was the biggest. Fairy males were VERY fertile. The last thing I needed was to bring another fairy-mix like myself into this unstable, hybrid hostile world of ours. Though I knew if I surrounded myself only with family, my child and I would be loved, I didn't want to even risk it, until Breandan and his band of merry haters were gone. Period.

My grandfather was staring at me, with a slight smile on his face. "Sorry, what did I miss? How could me loaning my lady bits out for hire to a vampire be smile-worthy?"

"Child, you still don't get it do you? You are beautiful, smart, albeit more often a smart alec, and funny. And you're a Brigant." Oh, that's right, in case I forgot. "You do not see why a man, of any species would be attracted to you with very little effort on your part?" That made me blush. He continued, "I would be willing to guarantee, all you need to do is be near him, possibly engage him in brief conversation, and you will have him panting at your heels. There will be no need to loan him your" disapproving look "lady bits."

Now my face must have been the color of a tomato. All three of my beloved cousins were snickering at me. They loved it when I "got all human" on them.

"However you proceed from there, will be up to you. But getting his attention will _not_ be a problem."

Which slapped me with another alarming thought. "What if he has my blood? Won't he be able to taste my fae lineage at that point?"

"That will be a challenge for you. He must never taste you. He will know immediately, as my spell to mask you cannot extend to your blood. And if he did, there would also be a huge possibility he would drain you. Even if he didn't mean to." How nonjudgmental of of him.

"But couldn't he just glamour me into giving him my blood, even if I denied him? I know they can't glamour full fairies, but I am part human, in case anyone here forgot."

Celighn spoke up. "Sookie, I had a distant aunt that was part human. During the last Fairy Vampire war, she was captured. They raped her and used her for their personal blood fountain." Gulp-that was making me feel all warm and fuzzy. "When her brothers and father finally found her, she was barely alive. But she did recover and said they had tried to glamour her repeatedly for information, but never could. She wished they had been able to. Then she might not remember what happened to her." The last part was in a small, sad voice very unusual for my feisty cousin. And it set my resolve. This had to be done. I wouldn't subject any of my people to any more atrocities like the ones she just described. The Water Fae might not use anyone as a blood fountain, but they would damn well torture them in evil and treacherous ways. They were known for it.

"But how do we know because the glamour didn't work on her, it would be the same for me? I would still like to be sure it won't work before I go in. That seems like their most powerful weapon. If I become physically threatened I could hopefully pop out of there, or worst-case scenario fight or use magic to have a chance. But if they can glamour me, I would have no chance. Any suggestions?"

Claudine finally piped up."Why don't we go to Claude's club? There's always vamps skulking around outside, waiting for an easy drunk dinner." She scrunched her nose up in distaste. "Of course, they're not allowed inside. We keep them outside, like pets." They all giggled at that.

I tapped my finger on my lips, thinking. "That could work, because you guys would be there, just in case. I could pretend to be a patron in the parking lot and see if one tries to bite me. Then I could just teleport back into the club. They would just assume I was fae and worked at the club. I would be sure to wear a wig and heavy makeup, just in case it was someone this Northman knew, we might run into later." I was still running a thousand different details through my mind, to get prepared as quickly as possible, and shared all of it aloud. I went on that way for several moments before I noticed everyone was staring at me.

"What?"

"Granddaughter, I have underestimated you. You are quite the strategist. As much as I dread this task, I think you are well suited to it." The look on the Three C's (my nickname for them)faces mirrored his words.

I felt a flush of pride that they all thought so.

"Alright, then." I stood up. "Let's get started tonight."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Wow, this story is haunting me. I have some edible fattery to make for T-giving tomorrow (well, technically today, since it's after midnight) and here I am posting this. Please forgive any incorrect word/grammar fuckery. My eyes are half open. But, Must. Get. It. Done. I'm so excited to get to their meeting. All characters that seem familiar belong to Mizz Charlaine Harris. Love you all for your reviews and faves and adds, etc. I wish I had the wherewithall to say something witty right now. ZZzzzzz...turkey...zzzzzz...stuffing...pie...zzzzzz...**

The Procurer

Chapter 3

Swirling my drink around, I periodically gave a mental scan outside the club and waited to find the trademark blank void that alerted me to a vampire-my guinea pig. I watched Claude flirt with every person with a pulse. An ass of a cousin he may be, but he knew how to work it, to bring in the money. He was gorgeous and the women, and men in the club only needed the light of his thousand watt smile upon them, to simply hand over their cash. As entertaining as this was, I had been here for over five hours and I was antsy to try this part of my experiment. I came early with Claude and Claudine to help them set up for the night, then spent the first few hours on testing my magic. I popped here, there and everywhere, making sure to try it many times away from the club, just in case I was pulling from my cousin's power. I tried my telepathy and mind suggestion, and the small amount of telekinesis and summoning of objects that I could do. I was pretty solid on all fronts. I definitely had to focus a lot more on this plane, but the abilities were there, which was comforting.

I choked on my drink, recalling earlier when I summoned Claude's ass-less chaps, that had previously been on his body, to my awaiting hands. Thank Frankincense he was wearing a banana hammock under those ridiculous things. He was pissed, shocker, so he zapped me. Thankfully I had on my wig, because it definitely singed the hair. Ass. I would have been pissed if he had ruined my real hair. Claudine found me another wig, and now I was wearing this Cleopatra style black one that I thought looked awful, which made Claude feel that much more vindicated. That was fine. I would plot revenge later-probably put a spell on his body glitter to give off a stench a few minutes after wearing it or something. We were in a constant cycle of pranks-that was our thing.

The hairs on the back of my neck suddenly stood up. A quick perimeter scan informed me there was a bloodsucker in the parking lot. I quickly touched the silver chain in my pocket and the silver dagger hidden in the waist of my pants. Heading towards the door of the club, I signaled to Grey (technically short for Geryon) a half demon, half fairy who worked security at the club, to signal I was making my move. He gave a nod, meaning, if I didn't returned in 5 minutes, he was to come looking for me.

I slipped out and tried to make as much noise as possible. There was no way of knowing just how inept the vampire would be. Since Vamps had made themselves known to humans, people were tripping all over themselves to feed and fuck them, or so my cousins always told me. Knowing that, those that waited for their prey to come drunkenly stumbling into their fangs, seemed pretty pathetic in my eyes.

I stomped and plodded the long-enough-to-entrap-the-vamp distance to Claudine's car, jingling keys, muttering under my breath the whole time. I tracked the creature like old-fashioned radar. It was the moving blip and I was the center bullseye. When I could sense it was less than ten feet from me, I dropped my keys facing it. As I rose up, I found myself face to face with him. He was about 5'8", dark brown and exceptionally...dated hair and sideburns. I was able to smother a snicker, but almost lost it when he spoke. "Hello, young lady. What are you doing out here all alone?" The old-fashioned manner in which he spoke, coupled with his awful genteel Southern accent, reminded me of a campy, period romance novel I'd read as a tween.

I had to bite my cheek to keep it together "I-my girlfriend went home with a guy she met inside." He was looking deeply into my eyes, like he wanted to climb inside and wear me as a skin and I could feel the hairs on my neck again. This must be his attempt at glamour. I kept my expression as gobsmacked as possible.

"What is your name, Miss?" He held onto my arm and I made sure to hide my cringe, though I wanted to cut his arm off at the wrist.

Leaving my mouth gaping open enough to catch flies, "Miranda."

"You find me very attractive, don't you Miranda?" I dumbly nodded. Was he serious?

"I would like to talk to you for a moment, Miranda, do you want to talk to me?" Again, I nodded like a dimwit.

"I find I am very hungry and I think you can help me with that, don't you agree, Miranda?"

Yes, I would like to shove my silver wrapped fist down your throat. Dopey nod. If I kept my mouth open much longer, I was going to drool.

"I would like to take you around the corner to the alley and get to know you better, Miranda. When we do, I want you to be as quiet as a church mouse. Would you like to get to know me better and help me with my hunger?" I would love my silver dagger to get to know you better, Rhett Butler, by cutting you from stem to stern.

He was slowly attempting to lead me to his rendezvous spot. This was my cue. His glamour was doing nothing other than annoying the shit out of me. I pulled my arm out of his grasp. "I've seen enough, thanks," I deadpanned.

I stuck around just long enough to see his startled expression before I popped back to the club.

"Whew. What a limp dick." I so wished I could see his expression, once I disappeared on him. Maybe I should work on an invisibility spell for these occasions. Ick-I felt dirty now.

Grey must have told Claudine I left, because she was in the dressing room waiting for me, our designated post-experiment location. She hugged me tightly. "Well?! That was quick. What happened? You're here, so I guess he didn't drain you."

"Psht. Hardly. God he was a joke. I did feel him trying to glamour me, but mentally I felt nothing."

"Did he notice a different scent on you?"

"Nope."

"Good. The masking spell worked."

"I don't mind saying I'm a little worried this was just one trial. This guy didn't seem like the sharpest knife in the drawer. How do I know this other one, Northman, won't be more skilled at glamouring since he is so old."

We pondered this for a bit, thinking over different scenarios. It was too risky to try it here again, since it was likely the same loser would be out trolling the parking lot. He might be ready for me to pop away if we met again.

Claude finished his set and came backstage. Changing from his policeman costume, or what little was left of it, into more modest street wear, he piped up. "Why don't you just do a trial run at Northman's bar? Vamps usually frequent the place, so you're bound to run into a few. You could see if they pick up your scent. The one beside your usually smelly human b.o. I mean." I threw a makeup brush at him. "I have it on good authority he usually isn't there first thing, so you could swing by, get a drink, see what happens."

He booped my nose with the makeup brush. "Claude! Dammit-gross! That thing was probably on someone's sweaty ass or man cleavage!"

"I use it to powder my balls so they don't chafe." I knew he was kidding but he tried to rub it on me some more, which resulted in a five minute tussle. I finally gave up, he was too strong. He had me pinned on the couch, with the brush poised over my face unless I would say he was the sexiest man alive, ew-which I did just to shut him up. I was so getting him back somehow.

Claudine brought us back from the shenanigans, as usual. "I think that sounds good, don't you Sookie?" I was quiet a moment, while I tried to think it all out. I was debating, do I go in costume or as myself, well as much of "myself" as I could safely show any vampire. What if, for some reason, Northman happened to be there when I did my trial run? If I met him while in disguise, I'd have to leave, then come back as "me". That would be a little risky. Again, if this guy was a thousand years old, he was probably pretty astute. He could pick up on my mannerisms, my masked scent, facial features or tells. That would definitely look suspicious.

Basically, just shy of immediate, life-threatening danger, I had to follow this through. So, whether or not he figured me out now or 3 weeks from now, was irrelevant. While I had learned it is good to strategize and plan your next move, I had to just dive in. I couldn't stand all this limbo shit. I needed to go there and take the first step to meet him. Yep, let's do this.

"Tomorrow." She cocked her head at me in confusion. "Tomorrow I'm going to-, what's this place called?"

"Fangtasia."

I choked on my water. "Please tell me your joking."

"No, why?"

I was holding my sides, laughing and they were both staring at me like I had just handed them a frog.

"It's a play on words. Do you get it?" Claudine asked me as if I were slow.

"Uh-yeah, I get it. It's an just awful name, word play or no word play."

I was still snickering as they exchanged a glance over their special cousin's slow head.

"Alrighty. Let's get ready for tomorrow then shall we dear cousin?" Claudine and I linked arms and headed out.

* * *

Claudine was flitting around me, finishing the last touches on my hair. "Well?"

"Looks great, but you do know your country bumpkin cousin can do her own hair and makeup, right?"

She laughed at me, "I know, but I'm so nervous for you, I had to do something besides pace and fret."

"There, there." I patted her hand. "I'll be fine." I wish I believed my own words.

We had spent the day shopping for a new human wardrobe. I had plenty of clothes at the palace, but none were appropriate here. It was either uber-casual workout garb or my fairy dresses, which would be a dead (ha) giveaway. And I had some things left at my Gran's house, that I had worn when I would visit and we would run to the store or church. But I hadn't been there since she died.

She had left me the house, but really, I had no desire to go unlock the house and drudge up old memories, just to get a few articles of clothing. Especially when I had this on my plate. I needed more updated stuff, anyway. I focused on jeans, dress casual things and outfits I could wear to the bar. We argued at length about the latter. Claudine thought I should get some goth gear, but I refused. I bought a few little black dresses but I refused to get corsets and combat boots and the like. It was going to be difficult enough trying to be someone I wasn't, I sure as hell wasn't going to do it in super uncomfortable clothing.

After the shopping marathon, Claude made good on his bartending lesson. I never really found out if they were hiring, so thought I would just go tonight and see what happened. If Northman never gave me a second look, or even a first one, then I could inquire if they were hiring and try that angle. Then we practiced popping around to make sure the power wouldn't fade the longer I spent in this realm. We were staying at the condo Claude and Claudine shared in Shreveport when they spent time here. Well, technically I was staying in one alone that was in the same building but as far from theirs, as possible. If this went passed the first introduction, I had to have a home as part of my human life ruse. One that didn't reek of fairy. What if Northman came over? My stomach tied up in knots at the thought. Focus, Sookie, breathe. Baby steps-let's see if I can even get him to notice me first.

I made sure I took a nap and ate well in preparation for the adjustment to the late hours. I couldn't bring my silver dagger, though I would take a length of silver chain, however. That would be easier explained than a specially-made weapon with the Brigant insignia on it. I took a look in the mirror. I thought I looked good. White dress with lots of red flowers. I figured it would make me stand out-a touch of light in a sea of black. I patted the hidden pocket the silver chain was tucked into. I was as ready as I was going to get.

After an almost tearful goodbye from Claudine, I was headed to the ridiculously named Fangtasia to woo the Vampire who could possibly hold the fate of the Sky Fae in his hands. No big deal, right? The condo was only about ten minutes from the bar, so I made good time, despite the nagging voice in the back of my head to stall, stall, you fool! The parking lot was full and it was only just after 10. I girded my loins, got out of the car and headed toward the line to get in the place.

"Suzie! Hey, Suzie!" Someone grabbed my arm from behind, as I spun around to defend myself. I paused right before I put my hand to the windpipe of a familiar face. "Amelia?! Jeez, don't do that!"

I gave an angry look to Claudine's friend, who often did the books for their club once every few weeks. She was a practicing witch and was also responsible for the wards placed on the club, deterring any vampires from entering.

"Well, I _was_ calling _you_." She gave me a knowing look and I had the grace to at least look at her apologetically. Dammit-had to get used to my new name. "Remember we were supposed to meet out here before you headed in?" She said a little too loudly, then tapped her head. Oh, yeah listen in, gotcha.

She thought at me: _Your cousins said you needed a date for tonight. I've been here a few times, so thought I'd help out. Plus, I never miss out on a chance to ogle the Viking._ Eyebrow waggle. _You'll probably be a little less conspicuous with someone, than all alone._ Well, aren't they smart. Thanks for filling me in guys.

We walked the few short steps to the back of the line. Back to our fake conversation-"Oh yes, sorry." I quickly scanned the crowd. No voids in line, but one at the door. I stepped out of line a bit to look at the void. She looked right at me. Damn. I stepped quickly back in line and turned my back to her and got **really** into my conversation with Amelia.

"Nice outfit. Rebecca from Sunnybrook Farms, huh?"

I looked her outfit over. "Well, you've got enough Morticia Adams going on over there, so I thought I'd do my own thing."

I was sweating despite the banter, because I was tracking that black blip and it was headed right to this bullseye. I felt her behind me.

"Hello, dolls." I turned around and sized her up. She was gorgeous-blonde hair, smokey blue eyes, perfect model figure and dressed like Hot Topic threw up on Elvira. "Amelia." she said to my date, but was staring at me. "Who's your delicious friend?" I was pretty sure she just eye fucked me.

"Pam, nice to see you. This is my friend, Suzie."

"Nice to meet you, Suzie." Solicitous eye fuck "Let's get you two a drink and tucked in nicely." Did she just lick her fangs at me? "Shall we?" She guided us past the line and right into the door. "Please, head over to the bar and have drinks on the house. I'll join you soon." She raised an eyebrow at me, then winked and was gone.

We headed over and had a seat. Though the parking lot was full and there was a line at the door, apparently they had just started letting people in. There were only about twenty or so other people there. I did a perimeter scan. Other than the humans here, there were four vampires in the vicinity. Two tending bar, one behind a wall of the bar, in what I assumed was a storage area, one outside who I assumed was Pam and one toward the back of the building, past a hallway. "Hello, lovely ladies. What's your poison?" The fangs behind the bar asked. Jesus, did they all lick their chops at anyone with a pulse?

I tried to put it in perspective. I guess I wasn't exactly polite with my dinner, either. I didn't chat up my chocolate cake before I ate it.

Amelia ordered a red wine and I ordered a soda. Between the monumental task at hand and blocking out the human minds swirling around me like a whirling dervish of sex and blood lust, there was no way I was having a drop of alcohol tonight. While she chatted with our bartender, I tried not to stare at him. He definitely had the Native American vibe, but was it genuine or just camp, like Pam's outfit. I also mentally followed the blips I couldn't visually see around, just to keep tabs. Thus far, neither vamp seemed to notice anything unusual about me, and neither had attempted glamour. One of the blips from behind the bar I hadn't been able to see came up with a case of beer to unload. He had a Sid Vicious look going on, so I determined, everyone was striving for a different look. I guess it would be boring to come to a vampire bar to find them all in cargo pants and polo shirts.

I watched the bar slowly fill up as more people were allowed entry. As I chatted with Amelia, she'd occasionally think funny thoughts at me about this human or that. Pam came and went a few times. Each time she was near, I got the impression she was trying to glean something from me. I tried to keep as relaxed and unassuming as possible. My cousins had told me, they can hear when your heart starts to race and can smell fear, so I just practiced keeping as "normal" as possible. She was a shrewd one and if I was going to have to make nice with her to get a job here, or to get a sit-down with the boss, I needed her thinking I was plain ol' Suzie Humanpants.

After an hour or so, Amelia must have felt the effects of her wine, because she grabbed my hand and headed to the dance floor. I did love to dance, so we cut the rug for a few songs. Halfway through the third song, I felt two blips headed toward us. One was where Pam had been earlier and I looked over to see her watching us dance intently. I got nervous, as the previously unseen one that had been in the back of the building, moved closer. I pretended to laugh at Amelia's antics but kept an eye on Pam. She turned from watching us, to watching the second blip on the radar approach. I couldn't see the vamp yet, but it seemed like the crowd was parting and a throng of heated whispers was spreading through the crowd? What the what? Was Elvis in the building? I didn't get it.

Amelia finally caught on to what was going on because she looked at me, then at the horde we were still unable to see past, then back at me and thought: H_ere comes your boy, Eric. _Ah. I kept dancing and made the motion for Amelia to keep at it, as well. I didn't want to ogle him, like all these other pathetic simps, here. She did the "drop it to the floor" move in front of me and I let out a surprised laugh, shaking my head. The music stopped, and I gave her a round of mini-applause and turned around to return to our seats. But I ran smack into the brick wall that was suddenly behind me. Wearing a Genesis t-shirt and jeans. I sucked in my lip and looked up. And up. My eyes were met with a pair the color of the Caribbean Ocean. And quickly dilating pupils. I heard and saw fangs snick down. The brick wall spoke. "Hello, Suzie."

Oh. Hello. Shit.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hello my sexy sexies. Sorry for the delay, I am having lotso computer fuckery the last two days. Anyway, it was slow going, but I got it done. For some reason, it takes me forever to write conversation heavy chapters, even though I love writing that the best. Weird. Hope all my States readers survived Turkey Day and Black Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Oh yeah-had a PM from a reader that thought Sookie was too "hard" in this story. Yes, she is, that's my point. She's been training most of her life to fight and survive, vamps, fairies, other supernaturals, so she will have lots of hard tendencies-cursing, a sharper eye, better judgement (hopefully where it matters). And she hasn't had the stark Christian upbringing from full time Gran parenting, so a lot of those ideals don't weigh as heavily on her. Conversely, I have chosen to keep parts of her very virginal and feminine. She's still a virgin because there were too many more reasons not to have sex this far along (as she previously stated) in her life. She wears pretty dresses. But she keeps silver in the dress pocket. That duality is her draw. She'll stake a bitch but then blush if she sees a naked butt. That's my opinion, and since this is my story-well, you follow me. Anyway, I just wanted to answer that properly in case anyone else wondered about that. Also, this story has been classified as AU, it is an alternate universe or OOC, out of character. For any of you reading my other story, I apologize for the delay. With the puter slowness I could only get this one out. I will work on it and get a chapter on that one out in the next day or two. Thank you for all your reviews and favorites, etc. You guys make my day and night. As always, I apologize for any word and grammar F-ups, no beta. And I do not own these characters, I just tease them a little.**

Chapter 4

"Hello, Suzie."

Oh. Hello. Shit.

Fuck me. I was not anticipating this. For him to seek me out, for him to know my (supposed) name already, for him to be so painfully hot.

His hair was shoulder length and a similar blonde to my own. It was a wonderful contrast to his eyes, which were blue oceans I wanted to lose myself in. His chiseled cheekbones framed them, his lips-full enough to be super kissable but not feminine, were curled up in something between a smirk and a smile. His fangs were down, though I wasn't sure why and I was intrigued by them-I wanted to touch them. I couldn't tear my eyes away from him. How nice of my cousins to fill me in on the tiny little fact that this vamp was sex on a stick. They thought I could handle this guy?! Think, Sookie. Focus! I couldn't be having these traitorous, pubescent thoughts on my own-he must be glamouring me.

It was definitely one of those moments where I hoped only mere milliseconds of actual time had passed, so as not to betray my mental chicanery. In a husky voice that belied any neutrality I was attempting, "How do you know my name?"

He laughed and squeezed my waist a little-when the eff did he grab my waist? Oh yeah, when I ricocheted off his deliciously rock hard bod.

"I know everything that happens here. Especially when a lovely temptress enters my establishment." His hands on my waist were making me feel warm in places below said waist, but I didn't want to break the contact. He was looking intensely into my eyes, like he was seeing into me. But I didn't feel the hairs on my neck or the invasive tingling, like I had with Forest Vamp the evening before. Trying to entice and woo me, yes. Sizing me up, yep. Trying to read my reaction to his attentions, uh-huh. But not glamour.

"Oh? Is that your eye in sky, over there?" I gestured to Pam, who had moved in to play interference, or was it wing man?, with Amelia. He threw his head back in a full on belly laugh, and I took the moment to moon over the musculature of his neck and lines of his jaw. She narrowed her eyes at me, to let me know she had heard my remark. She leaned in and whispered something to Amelia, running her hand up the slope of her neck, making her giggle. Yep, wing man.

After the rumbling of his laughter subsided-did I mention how fuck hot he was when he laughed, "Suzie, you have just made Pam indebted to you." At my quizzical look, "Usually when she summons me here, it is to look at a pair of breasts with an empty cavity for a head on it's shoulders. For that, I usually punish her. But for once, it seems" he leaned into whisper and I felt his lips barely brush against the shell of my ear at the same time both his hands splayed over the small of my back, "she had just cause."

Yeah. I was in trouble with this one. As I barely managed to prevent my eyes from rolling back into my head and my knees from buckling, "I've said no more than two sentences to you. What makes you think I'm_ not_ just a pair of breasts with an empty cavity for a head?"

Another belly laugh. "Those limpid, perceptive eyes of yours." I arched an eyebrow. "They tell me far more than your chest would. Though, I would love a chance to study that at length, as well." He had the finesse not to look down. I blushed the color of a pomegranate, I'm sure. He reached up to brush the backs of his fingers on the heat of my cheeks. "Another tell. Ladies who aren't very bright usually don't have the good graces to blush."

Recovering, "Ah. Good to know. Does that thought extend to men?"

He looked thoughtful and held my hands, rubbing the tops absently with his thumbs. 'The man that blushes is not quite a brute.' He whispered, almost to himself, still drilling holes into my eyes with his gaze. Note to self: he's into eye contact.

'But pleasure, full of glory, as of joy; Pleasure which neither blushes, nor expires.' The startled look in his eyes, that I had known his quote, was rewarding. I had just started to gain back some self-respect at my wit, when I stopped cold: I was more happy at the fact I had impressed him, than I was at myself for recalling his Edward Young quote. I was going to have a serious sit-down with my brain and vagina later, to figure out just who was in charge here. Seriously, I had a job to do. That thought sobered me a bit. Was I a woman on a mission or a star struck tweeny? "Well," I removed my hands from his "now that we've impressed each other with our knowledge of 18th Century poets, is there somewhere we can sit? I'm a little winded and thirsty from dancing."

"Certainly. We could continue this conversation in a quieter spot, such as my office." He began to lead me off the edge of the dance floor.

I stopped in my tracks and gave him a knowing look. "A table out here will suffice." He have me a shrug of his shoulders, and an evil grin, as if to say, 'Hey a guy's gotta try, right?' and led me to a large, curved booth with a table, facing out toward the entire bar. I assumed this was his table, since no one else was sitting there and this place was definitely now to capacity, people sitting and standing anywhere there was a spot. He let me slide in and followed behind, giving a proper distance between us. A soda appeared before me and a bottle of something called True Blood appeared before him. Ew-was that what I thought it was?

"Tell me, Suzie. Judging by your look of shock at my dinner" he lifted the bottle to his lips and gave an exaggerated swig, while staring me down, then licked his lips provocatively, "you don't often keep the company of vampires. To what do I owe this pleasure?" His fangs had disappeared for the time being, I assume to soften his image and allow for easier conversation?

"You seem to know my name, via your mole over there" Pam and Amelia were now dancing very seductively together on the dance floor "but I still don't know yours."

"Eric." He took my hand from the table and sniffed it, then my wrist. He brushed his lips across my pulse point which was doing, the loop-dee-loop, then across the top of my hand. Looking up at me, from the sex he was waging on my hand, I noticed his pupils were slightly dilated again

"Eric." I repeated, like a parrot. I shamefully felt the heat of that introduction down to my toes. Dammit. He needed to stop this Casanova shit and I needed to tighten my lady bits up and close them down for the duration. I pulled my hand from his and took a deep breath. "I came here with Amelia. She likes this place and obviously has history with Pam. I've never met a vampire before. I have nothing against them-you, I've just never had the opportunity, until now." They have a tendency to drain my kind.

"Where are you from, that you've had no opportunity no meet another vampire? We've been out for several years now." He said in not in a judgmental tone, just curious.

"Bon Temps. It's a tiny town about an hour from here." I gave him the shpeel my cousins and I had laid out for just this occasion. "I literally just moved here, this past weekend."

"Here, meaning Shreveport?" His eyes lit up a little, when I nodded.

"Yep. I'm about ten minutes from here, renting a family condo."

"What brought about the big change?"

"My grandmother passed away last year and I had that huge house, all alone, way out in the country. It was just time."

He nodded his understanding and we slipped into a brief comfortable silence. Well, my insides were doing jumping jacks, but other than that it was comfortable.

"Honestly, I did have another purpose coming here tonight." I ignored his eyes, narrowing at me in distrust. "I was curious to know if you were hiring." He said nothing, but looked a little relieved at my innocent motives, so I kept on with my practiced charade. "I had heard of this place, even in Bon Temps, so I figured it was a good place to make money. I think I was right, judging by the crowd tonight. And this is only Thursday!" I was playing with my glass."Anyway, I'm a good organizer, I can waitress and do some decent bartending, as well." I looked down at the table, to appear shy. "But, now that I've been here, I'm a little nervous, seeing how all the girls dress and act..." I trailed off.

"How is that, Suzie?"

"Well, no offense, they just seem a little...desperate." He had a gleam in his eye and I had no idea why.

"Desperate? For what, do you think?"

"They want sex, Eric." I'm not sure, but I think he shivered when I said that word. "Sex and to be bitten." Again, ghost of a shiver, as his gaze dropped down to my neck, then back up.

"Having never been around vampires until now, how do you know this?"

"I think one would have to be a fool not to notice it. Watch." I gestured to a waitress nearby. She walked right past a table of humans that were calling out for refills, to a table of two vampires, who had full True Bloods in front of them. She leaned in, way more than was necessary, rubbed her thighs together as she did so and let her hand graze her neck that sported old fang marks. They whispered something to her and she glided away, dazed and happy. "That. I don't like that behavior and would have a hard time working here if it was expected of me. Plus, it would kill me to see how poorly your staff treat the people in favor of the vampires. That's not fair. Not to mention, howmuch money you're losing. Your real money is being made on humans, Eric. Tourists who come to see the dangerous show and drink so they don't look too obvious and attract their **real** attentions. And the ones who thrive on being bitten, so they drink a lot to get up some liquid courage to approach and proposition them. So, yeah, I would have a hard time being okay with all of that." He looked at me, his expression unreadable. I reeaaallly hoped I hadn't gone too far. But ruse, or no ruse, if I was going to work here, I wasn't going to act like that.

He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Pam and Amelia, presumably taking a break from dry humping each other on the dance floor. "Master. I see you and our new friend, Suzie are having an arousing conversation. You can't keep her all to yourself. Any chance we could join in for a four-way?" She eye fucked me again, and I blushed. Again, dammit. "Well, aren't you sweet." She fanged at me, pleased she could shock me.

"Not especially." I snarked back quickly and Eric choked on the blood he was sipping. Pam narrowed her gaze on me, indignant and pissed I dared sass her. He scooted towards me, protectively. Hmm. I'll stash that thought away for later. "Pam." He leveled her anger with a look and she turned away, sulking.

"Miss-you have never told me your last name."

"Stackhouse" Pam supplied. When I looked at her with a start, "Eye in the sky, Suzie." She smirked. Assuming she read that from my Driver's License, I crossed my fingers she hadn't memorized my temporary address, as well.

"Miss Stackhouse is looking for a job. Are we hiring?"

Still giving me a milder version of the stink eye, "We need bus boys." Bitch.

Was there a low growl coming from him? Did vamps growl? "Pamela. I need to see you in the office for a moment. Excuse us, ladies." They zipped off, down the hall, before I could even blink. Okay.

Amelia, who had been quiet this whole time, finally spoke up, "Havin' fun yet Suuuuzie?" She drunkenly overemphasized. Shit-with her big mouth, drunk was not a good thing. I didn't trust her not to slip up at some point. Or during private time with Pam, if that was in the plans for tonight. "Let's go to the bathroom." I dragged her off with me. When we got there, we waited in line. Every time she tried to talk I shushed her. We waited until the handicapped stall opened up and I dragged her in.

I grabbed her by both shoulders and pushed my thoughts into her head. _Amelia-I need you to stop this shit, stat! I do not need you slipping up and saying my real name or any other info they don't need to know. That defeats the purpose of you 'helping' me._

She looked hurt and thought back at me, _I'm sorry I'm a little slurry and your name came out funny,_ _but_ _I warded myself, Sookie. Against actually saying your real name, but also so Pam or anyone else can't glamour me. Not that she's ever had to glamour me before-_eyebrow waggle-b_ut don't you see? That shows it worked. I tried to say Sookie, but I couldn't. Okay? I swear. Trust me. Or at least my magic._

I let her go and she had the decency to look sheepish._ "_Guess I should've eaten more before having three glasses of wine, huh?"

"Hmph" That waylaid my fears for the moment. "You're switching to water now, Amelia."

"Definitely. There are many more hours left to this night, if you know what I mean." She made a vulgar motion with her tongue. "Ugh, you're as bad as Claude." But I laughed.

"Who me? If by that you mean I like having sex, then yes. But, the similarity ends there. The last vagina he saw was on his way out of his mother's. So...It looks like tall, blonde and handsome is in to you. If I were you, I'd be all over that."

"Foof-it's not like that. I need a job and I was hoping there was a position to fill, nothing more." I wasn't sure how much she knew. I was hoping very little.

"Psht! Oh I bet he has a position he wants filled." I swatted at her head. We reapplied our lipstick, fluffed our hair and headed back to the table.

Eric and Pam were there waiting for us. Eric stood as we approached. "Everything okay, ladies?"

"Yep, just some human business to take care of." Eew, Amelia, filter! I doubt they wanted to hear about our bathroom particulars and blushed a little, which, of course, both Eric and Pam picked up on. Eric looked at me like I was a cute puppy and Pam looked at me like I was an alien. If nothing else, I've entertained them.

"Suzie, there is a position I have been looking to have filled" Amelia snorted "for quite a while, but have not had the time, nor the patience required to conduct interviews. I think you would be well-suited for it." He folded his hands together and leaned forward. I felt his thigh brush mine under the table and I almost swooned. But not before giving myself a mental slap. "In case you are not aware, I own the bar and Pamela, here has a share in it. If you could not predict by her sugary sweet demeanor" I would swear she kicked him under the table, but he gave no sign of it "she has issues when it comes to dealing with the human staff. That's where you would come in. I would like you to oversee them, handle hiring, firing, etc. There is the added benefit of how much you entertain me" heated look "and irritate Pam. The perfect mix."

Wow. Could it really be this easy? Did I really make that much of an impression on him so soon? Don't get too cocky, kid. Getting a job is a far cry from being privy to any information he would have that could help me. God, getting him to trust me was going to take forever. What if they didn't have forever? What if Breandan makes a move before I can learn anything? I started getting a little panicky, then realized they were both staring at me.

"I'm sorry. Did I not say yes? Because I was thinking yes. And thank you, very much. But, I have to ask, what makes you trust me and have faith in my abilities without even seeing my resume? In fact, we met all of a few minutes ago. So, not to sound ungrateful but what gives?" He smiled an appreciative smile at me and again I had to fight with my inner tween not to jump up and down, clapping in excitement.

"I've learned to trust my instincts over the years, Suzie. While our interaction here has been brief, I have heard enough from you to know you're intelligent, observant, honest," ouch "a no-bullshit type, which is exactly how we like to operate. You ask the right questions, speak when there is a need, without running off with, as Pam likes to call it 'diarrhea of the mouth', like many people often do. As for as your resume-I don't need the opinions of humans who previously employed you about your skills, which I can plainly see with my own eyes." Good because it was all a bunch of made up hooey on a piece of paper.

"Huh." Well, that was eloquent.

"I may increase some of your tasks, like meeting here during the day with our vendors, organizing events and the like, but we will see when the time comes."

"Wow, okay. That all sounds good."

Before I could finish, Pam interrupted. "Now that's all settled and we can all high five each other, I'm bored and want to dance." She entwined Amelia's arm through hers. "Tell me, dear, do you know how to Lambada?" She had her up and out on the floor, grinding her thigh into Amelia's crotch, with sexy Latin music playing, in a flash.

"I apologize for my partner. She doesn't care to know the fine art of subtlety when it comes to dealing with people. Now then, I would like to go over salary, benefits, detailed job description, etcetera. Would you mind getting this settled tonight? I would like you to start as soon as possible. Is this agreeable?"

"Eager, are we?" I couldn't resist teasing him a little.

"Oh, Miss Stackhouse, you have no idea." Shiver. Uh-oh. Well, I started it. He ran his eyes down the slope of my neck and back up again.

I cleared my throat. "Uhm, sure. I can start as soon as you need me. If it speeds things up to fill all the paperwork out now, that's fine." He slid out of the booth and held out his hand to help me out.

As we took two steps forward, Pam stepped in front of us, hissing at Eric, "Master. Compton is here."

"Ha! Finally. This should be interesting. Send him over." She disappeared and he turned to me, "Excuse me, Suzie, I need just a moment to deal with an acquaintance. Pam will take you to the office and get you started on the new employee packet."

"Sure thing." I saw Pam in my periphery and turned. She had a vampire with her. It was the experimental vamp from last night! He didn't recognize me, but as I passed him, he turned his head in my direction, sniffed then stopped, his eyes narrowing at me. I forced myself to keep moving and not run, but also willing my knees not to quake in fear. Shit. Damn. Now what?

**A/N2: The few brief quotes are from Night Thoughts by Edward Young. It's good stuff. Kind of has some supernatural/nocturnal/goodery in it. It is long and a little eye-crossing in it's wordiness, but still very pretty, as is most poetry from that period.**


	5. Chapter 5

The Procurer

Chapter 5

I did my best to keep going, keep my pulses even and not look back. For some reason, though I hadn't felt the need to all night, I slipped my hand in my hidden pocket and palmed the silver chain.

Once we got to the door of what I assumed was the office, I could relax a bit more. I wasn't in the clear yet, but felt better separating myself from the goon, Compton, Pam had called him. She escorted me in and quickly went to work, pulling things out of cabinets and file folders. She copied my (fake) drivers license, while I filled out the basic application and made me sign a non-disclosure act. All in all, it took a total of maybe ten minutes and that's only because I had the annoying habit of reading what I was filling out. I could barely sign each paper before Pam was whipping it out from under me.

We were mostly silent during the whole process, but I had a few things I wanted to know from her, since we would be working together. "So...I can tell I annoy you. Will we be able to work together, without getting into it every five minutes?"

"Human, I would love to _get into it_ with you" she purred and ran her hand up my arm.

"That's not what I meant and you know it." I refused to blush or get flustered by her flirting. "And, you will be calling me Suzie." I leaned forward and looked right into her eyes. We had ourselves a stand-off for a good minute.

Finally, she gave a "Hmph" and broke her gaze. "Despite how it may seem, you don't really annoy me. I am annoyed you have the gall to speak to me the way you do, since I usually invoke fear in most humans. Which I do enjoy. You are...interesting. I have not encountered someone like you in a long while. Nor has my Master. As you can probably tell, brains are in short supply around here, as far as humans go. Most of our employees, those that keep their shit together long enough to work here more than a month, just want to be fangbangers and get paid for it. Not exactly stimulating, at least mentally speaking." She gave me a meaningful look, alluding to the other ways they stimulated her.

While I mulled that over, she filled out her end of the paperwork, created a file folder with my name on it and filed it in the cabinet. Several minutes passed. Just when I thought I would have to put a quarter in her, to get her to speak again, she continued. "For this reason, I think I will enjoy your presence. As far as your original question; if by "get into it" you mean, teasing, goading and overall fuckery, then we will be, yes. That is, as the kids say, how I roll. I enjoy messing with you, it's entertaining. I also enjoy messing with Eric. If we get to know each other better, I think it will be fun to gang up on him. I haven't had a woman as just a friend in a very long time." She looked thoughtful for a second. Then, "Does this arrangement suit you?"

I had a feeling not many people got to see this side of her. "It does, Pam. And thank you."

"Good. Stay here, I believe Eric will be wrapping it up with Compton" and she was gone. Damn, I had forgotten about him. I hoped he had forgotten about me.

I looked around the office. I was a little surprised at the décor. While the bar was hokey and cliché, this was modern and elegant. Instead of blood red and black, it was tan and mahogany. It was sparsely decorated so as not to appear too comfortable, just enough to be stylish. The desk was huge, with clean lines. The couch against a far wall and the chairs facing the desk matched and were a warm tan. The only thing on the walls were two well-forged swords and one very old looking drawing of a Viking ship. I was drawn to it and stepped within centimeters to get a closer look. It definitely had some age; it looked to be on vellum. It reminded me of the Illuminated Manuscripts I had seen in my great grandfathers library. I traced the modulating, bold colors and heavy outlines with my fingers along the glass and marveled at the gilding.

I was so into my observations that I didn't notice anyone coming up behind me until he spoke, "Do you like it?"

After I peeled myself off the ceiling, "Shit biscuits! Don't do that!" I had my hand clutching at my heart, while he laughed one of his beautiful, hearty laughs, yet tried to look contrite. I tried to regain my composure.

"I'm sorry, Suzie, I didn't mean to sneak up on you."

"It's okay, just-Jesus, shuffle your feet or something." He snickered at that.

After I calmed down, he repeated his question. "The Drakkar, do you like it?"

"The painting?" He nodded. "It's stunning. Drakkar-what is that?"

"It is the Viking long boat or vessel, those that have the dragon head adorning them."

"Is it as old as I suspect it is? It reminds me of an Illuminated Manuscript."

"Ah, you noticed."

"I have seen pictures of them from the Middle Ages and Renaissance and this is such a perfect example."He looked pleased at my response. I didn't say any more.

If he wanted to talk more about it, he would, so I returned to studying it's intricacy. "I can't imagine the time and dedication it took to making something so lovely. I picture some poor artist, commissioned by wealthy Scandinavian royalty to create this majestic long boat, bent over his parchment, with a single candle lighting the room, taking such pains to make every stroke, every line perfect..." I forced myself to stop talking, realizing he was staring at me. "What?"

His voice was very quiet, "You have surprising depths, Miss Stackhouse."

"I do, don't I?" and I stuck my tongue out at him. His eyes crinkled and he threw back another big laugh. His laughter was addictive.

I had to get us on track again, or I might just spend the rest of the night concocting ways to make him keep laughing. I did not like the things he was making me feel one bit, but right now, I had to focus. "So, paperwork is all filled out, now what?" He gestured for me to take a seat and he leaned up against his desk facing me, with his legs stretched out. We went over my pay, benefits and the like-none of which I cared a lick about; I was here for a one purpose; to infiltrate. Not to mention, I had no idea what was the norm in the human world, when it came to salary and other compensation. I wasn't expecting the ball to get rolling so quickly, or I might have asked Claude, Claudine or Amelia. But here I was, so I nodded and responded when it seemed appropriate. Mostly I stared at his arms and lips and eyes and any other part of him I could ogle while he wasn't looking.

"You've been awfully quiet. Do you have any questions, or should I continue talking so you can keep taking inventory of my body?" My eyes must have gotten big as saucers and I'm sure I blushed beet red down to my toes.

"Me? No, I wasn't-I do not-"I stuttered over my words. The look on his face preemptively called any bullshit I could possibly come up with, so I stopped. I stuck my chin out. "And if I was?"

He smiled, "You'll get no complaints. You can eyeball me all you like. May I have the same privilege?"

I cleared my throat. Damn it was hot in here. "That does bring me to a point. Mr. Northman. If I am going to be working for you, our relationship must be purely professional. Do you think you can manage that?"

He looked me over for a moment. "Interesting that you bring that up, since it was _you_ who was just eyefucking _me_ seconds ago." He leaned over me, grabbing the arms of the chair. His nose was almost touching mine, his eyes boring into me. "I will make no such promise, Miss Stackhouse. There may be a time, in the very near future, when you are begging me to provide more than...professional behavior. And, I would very much like to provide that. I do not like to start out our relationship with a lie, so I won't promise that. The best you will get is that I will do my best to not tempt you. And from your pulse rate and scent," to my absolute horror, he took a big sniff and closed his eyes. When he opened them, he had a lusty look and his pupils were dilated, "you are very easily tempted."

Ooooh, that pompous ass! I scooted the chair back, breaking the light hold he had on it, so I could stand up to him. Crossing my arms over my chest, "Well, you can ease your concern then, Mr. Northman. If your sense of smell is so sharp, I'm sure you smell the bile rising in my throat at your very untempting display of ego."

His eyes crinkled again, stepping back and leaning onto the desk as he was before while his laughter gripped him. "Suzie, I have a feeling my life just got a lot more interesting. You intrigue me more than any human has in decades, possibly longer."

Sigh...he might be a cocky ass, but he also knew how to say the right thing at the right time. Dammit-I would rather be mad at him. Why was that again? Oh yeah, I'm here for information. I was in serious deep shit if I kept forgetting my goal every five minutes.

"Not to get off a topic as nice as this one, but I did want to ask you; the vampire who came earlier to talk to me, do you know him? His name is Bill Compton."

Gulp. Fuck. Shit. "No. You and Pam were the first vampire I've ever met." Technically not a lie. "Why do you ask?"

"He asked about you, who you were. I told him it was none of his business. But he was a little overly interested. He does have an ancestral home in Bon Temps, possibly you've run into him before and weren't aware he's a vampire."

"It's possible. I do remember a neighbor across the way with the same last name. Though if I recall the house properly, it was in atrocious shape. I can't imagine he would currently be living there."

"I can" he smirked. He walked around to a locked drawer in the desk, opened it and pulled out a key ring. Pulling one off, he gave it to me, but not before putting it on a Fangtasia key ring.

Taking it from him, "We never really discussed hours, what time do you want me to start tomorrow? What hours, what days, etcetera?"

"For now, I would like you to start around 4pm. That way you will have a few hours to work on schedules and paperwork before anyone gets here. The human staff arrives at 6pm. Pam gets here usually within an hour of sunset and I usually get here around 9 or 10, depending on what I have to do that evening. You can leave when I get here, if you choose, or you can stay, if there are other tasks. Some days we may need you here later, if it's going to be busy. And some days we may need you here earlier. That is where we see how the first week or two goes to see how many tasks you'll be in charge of. Does this sound agreeable?"

"Absolutely!" That sounds great, actually. I was prepared to be working waitress or bar hours of 6pm to 3am, so that is way better. I'm pretty flexible, and quite honestly, don't have too much of a social life, so staying late or coming in early won't be a problem."

"Good. We will know in a few days how easily you take to your job. As previously stated, Pam can't stand dealing with the staff. Most of them are fangbangers and getting them to mind their manners and stay focused on their jobs is like pulling teeth."

"I've heard you and Pam both use that term-fangbanger. Though I'm afraid to ask, and I can probably guess what it means, what is a fangbanger?"

"Humans who are obsessed with fucking vampires and giving them their blood."

"Okay. The-sex-I can understand, but why the obsession with giving their blood?"

"Our bite can be quite pleasurable. We can make it as gentle or painful as we like. That alone is often said to equate to an orgasm for most humans. Care to experience it for yourself?" He looked hopeful.

"Ha. No thanks."

"Would it make the bile rise up in your throat if I said I plan to one day convince you otherwise?" I said nothing, just raised my eyebrow at him. He got the hint. "Pam will leave you a list tomorrow of things we will need done. Now, if you will excuse me. I have some things to attend to and some calls to make. I would like it if you would stay a little longer. I hate the thought of your first visit here to be taken up with all work and no play. And I would love to have a dance with you-professional only, of course." He put his hands up in innocence at my sideways look. "Fine. You can wait at my table. Pam and Amelia should be there. I won't be very long."

"Okay, that sounds good." I shut the door behind me and started down the hallway. Halfway there, I checked my phone. A text from Claudine, Howd it go? Still alive? I'd rather talk to her briefly, than text back and forth twenty times, so looked around for a possible quiet spot to do so. Seeing a door that looked like it lead out to a loading area, I headed through it. It was a much quieter, well-lit area. There was a red Corvette and a silver minivan parked just out of the light. That's a weird mix. I took a few deep breaths of night air and breathed them out. It was very easy to get distracted while dealing with Eric and I didn't realize how much I needed a breather, now that I was having one. I'd have to remember that for later.

I dialed Claudine and she picked up on the first ring, "Hey, cousin. You are well and alive, I am guessing."

"Yes, I'm fine. I got a job." We had agreed to be vague with each other on the phone.

"You did? Wow, you work fast. This is great news. I will tell Grandfather. He will be pleased and proud, I'm sure."

"There are so many things to tell you, but I'll wait until I get home, okay?" I couldn't wait to lay into her about not giving me the head's up on Mr. Hotter than Hades. "I'll probably stay a bit longer, but not more than a few hours. If you're sleeping when I get there, I can talk to you tomorrow, before work."

"Ooh, I can't wait, cousin. Be careful and- have fun." She said the last part in a smarmy tone. Yeah, she knew damn well what he looked like and how hard it would be to keep my wits about me. Fairies.

The call ended and I turned to head back in. But I couldn't. There was something blocking my path. But, instead of the delicious brick wall from earlier, it was the annoying, bothersome frame of Bill Compton. In a flash he had his hand very tightly around my wrist, twisting it painfully. Fangs down, he hissed, "Hello, Suzie."


	6. Chapter 6

The Procurer

Chapter 6

"Hello, Suzie." He hissed at me, while squeezing and twisting my wrist to immobilize me.

"How do you know my name?" I did my exercises I'd practiced for years. Take deep breaths, remain calm, distract your opponent while you plot your plan of action.

"Word gets around when something as sweet as you comes in to our neck of the woods."

Ugh, was he serious? Who the hell talked like that? "Sweet? How would you or anyone else here know how sweet I am? And you can let go of me any time now." He had my right hand, but I wiggled it and tried to free it from his grasp to distract from the fact I was slowly reaching my left hand into my pocket. I called the chain from my right pocket to my left. I didn't want him to see it just appear. I palmed it for the time being, I wasn't going to show my hand, literally and figuratively, unless I had to.

"Oh, I find I can't let go of you. You smell so good. Yet so familiar..." I felt the hairs on my neck and that weird tingle in my brain. Goddammit, Compton, you can't just have a conversation with a girl the normal way? This was my conundrum-do I pull out the silver, showing I'd had a weapon this whole time, or risk anyone knowing I can't be glamoured? I decided, for right now, I was more worried about the latter, so I had to stop him. Pulling the silver out, I slapped it right onto his cheek.

He screamed, let go of me and his skin immediately started to smoke and burn. Then a few things happened all at once. Eric, flung the back door open and I must have not held the silver in place long enough because Compton regained some strength and punched me. I flew backwards and hit the wall, then the ground. I didn't hear or see much except for ringing and stars. Then I got mad.

Despite the pain, I sat upright, got my meager wits about me and stood up, tentatively. "You fucking asshole! How dare you!?" When I focused my eyes, I realized I wasn't looking directly at them, so changed my direction a bit. Eric was holding Compton up by his neck, but they had both paused to stare at me, mouths agape. I stomped closer. "What kind of man sneaks up on a woman, in an alley, having a phone conversation? If you wanted to talk to me, could you not have done so inside and approached me, head on, like a real man?" The silver I had been holding was on the ground, so I picked it back up. "I ought to slap this on your other cheek." He hissed at me and Eric let out a low growl, "Suzie-".

Just then Pam came through the door and took in the scene. Her fangs popped down and she began hissing at me, but looking between the three of us, hands out in claws, unsure of what method of attack to take or who. "Master?"

Eric threw Compton down like a ragdoll. "Pam, take Compton inside to wait for me. We need to have a talk." She smiled, fanged really, an evil look, nodded her head and zipped off, dragging him with her. "Suzie, my office now." He sounded pissed. He grabbed my arm, ow-dammit the same arm douchebag had grabbed and practically dragged me back to his office. Yep, he was pissed. When the door shut, I was immediately pinned up against it by my shoulders.

"Do you mind telling me, Suzie, what in the fuck you were doing carrying silver?! Little Miss I've Never Met a Vampire Before?! Bullshit! " He was scaring me. His fangs we're still down and they looked huge now that they were aimed at me in an angry way. Shit, thinkthinkthink. I hated to, but I pulled out my fail safe Celighn had taught me; I started crying. It was demeaning, I thought, to pull that weak, feminine wiles crap, but it could give me a split second to think. I couldn't pull off the loud, obnoxious sobbing fit I had seen some women do, so I did the only thing I could manage; I stared at him with big eyes and let the drops fall down my cheeks silently. He groaned and closed his eyes for a second, then opened them again, in alarm, as if he had just remembered I still had the silver in my hand, which I did.

But my hands were loose by my sides, and the chain was barely dangling off my thumb. I threw it across the room. My voice thick with my tears"There, better?"

"No" though his eyes said differently. I had hoped he would let me down, my feet weren't touching the floor, but he didn't.

"Eric-Mr. Northman, I never meant any threat to you, or anyone here, honestly. I brought it out of fear of the unknown. You have to understand, in the small town I came from, everyone talked of the evils of vampires and that you would drain and rape us all, if given a chance. I knew that wasn't true. There was no way you all would come out like you had, only to act like monsters, and become persecuted again. That would only drive you back into the shadows. But, on the flip side of that, I did grow up learning to protect myself. I carry pepper spray in my purse, too. That doesn't mean I use it unnecessarily. I knew enough of vampires to know that you have super strength and speed, and you can glamour people. So I couldn't just leave the silver in my purse, I had to have it on me. Once I came in and met you and Pam, I had honestly forgotten it was there. Then, when I went outside just to call my cousin to tell her about the job, your friend, Mr. Compton", I spat his name out "accosted me, like a pervy stalker, I slapped his ass with the silver. I won't apologize for that. He deserved it."

I felt myself slowly sliding down the wall, where my feet thankfully touched the floor. But I was still pinned lightly by my shoulders. He let one side loose to wipe a stray tear from my cheek. He looked at it intently, then sniffed it? I wasn't sure, but he got that faraway look he got whenever we were in close contact and his pupils dilated, but he shook it off and put his hand back on my shoulder.

"He is not my friend." I looked at him quizzically, till I grasped what he was saying. "He is my employee, of sorts. For another business of mine. He should not have done that to you. In fact, we have strict rules in place here to protect against it. For that he will be punished. He will also be punished for striking you." At that he lightly stroked the cheekbone I could feel swelling up. "You should have told me, Suzie, that you were carrying it. For us, it is a concealed weapon and, despite understanding your reasons, I find it hard to trust you now."

Great. Three steps forward, four steps back. Thanks, Compton, you fuckstick. "You're bleeding. Your temple."

"I am?"

"Yes, do you mind if I lick it for you? Our saliva has clotting properties, it will stop the bleeding."

Uhm-eww. "Noo...I guess not. You're not going to bite me are you? Like, once you get a taste of my blood?"

"I'll try to refrain." My thoughts raced, recalling discussion with my family about what my blood may or may not do to them or taste like, but I was stuck. It was too far to turn back. If I had to I would have to pop home and this mission would be done. That made me sad, for more than one reason, but I pushed those thoughts back. I steeled myself for the outcome. He smiled at me gently and for some reason that calmed me.

He leaned forward and for the first time, maybe because I was closer to his neck than I had been all night, I picked up his scent. He smelled like nothing I had ever smelled before. Like wood and earth and the ocean, all in one. It was intoxicating. He must have felt the same, because I heard him take in a deep breath I knew he didn't need and then shudder. His hands that had been holding my shoulders, were now massaging them, and I felt myself lean back against the door, tilting my head up toward him. One hand left my shoulder and slipped behind my neck to lightly hold the back of my head. The second his tongue touched my skin, I felt an electrical jolt all the way down to my hootchie. He lapped gently at the wound, mimicking other acts men did with their tongues on ladies bits that I had only heard about, and I felt my breath quicken and my heart pound. Oh my. This was torture.

It must have been something for him, too because he groaned and he pulled my body in closer. So close, in fact, I could feel something very hard and large against my stomach. I gripped his shoulders in response. I could feel the spot on my temple tightening up though he was still lightly caressing the area with his tongue. He must have eventually gotten all the blood, because he pulled away begrudgingly and looked at me in a heavy-lidded daze, "What are you?"

Oh yeah. I was supposed to be on guard because at any moment, the vampire licking my blood could taste the fairy in me and drain me. I was useless. I barely found my voice, and huskily whispered "What do you mean?" I looked back at him with the same heavy-lidded look.

"You taste...different. Sweet. Heady. Delicious." I was starting to get my traitorous senses back.

"I don't know. Is it going to be a problem?" He started rubbing his cheek against my head and his lips were brushing against the tops of my ears, making me feel warm in my hootch again. Or, still.

"Mmmm...problem? Not at all. It just makes you even more interesting than you already were. And me that much more driven to win you over."

"Mr. Northman!" I tried to put as much authority and conviction into those two words as I could. I grasped at his arms, which also gave me a thrill, since they were like small tree trunks. He slowly let up and took a step back from me.

"I much prefer you call me Eric."

"Well, we'll see." I walked to where I had thrown the silver and picked it up. He eyed me warily.

"You cannot bring that with you, while you work here." He said matter-of-factly.

"I hardly think that's fair!"

"When it comes to my and Pam's safety, I hardly care for what you find fair." Wow, this was a different side of him. I wanted to punch myself. Of course it was a different side-I had only known him all of three or four hours.

"I am going to be encountering a lot of vampires while I work here, any number of who could act like Mr. Compton. I think it's only fair I should have protection." "You will. While you are here, no one will dare touch you, let alone harm you."

"Oh, really? Did that memo already go out? Because it seems Compton wasn't on your mailing list."

He looked extremely pissed, then contrite. His voice became soft, "Suzie I am very sorry for what happened tonight. I assure you, no, I swear to you, this will never happen again, while you are under my protection." He stepped closer and gently touched my swollen cheek. "Compton is a fool, though in his slight defense, he is new to the area and does not realize how little insubordination I will take. Which is none. All others from the area, know my rules and follow them strictly. You **will** be safe here. Pam and I will make sure of that, as well as the other vampires employed here. Okay?"

I silently nodded. I had to gain the little trust I previously had and lost, back.

"Though I have to say I was beyond impressed at how quickly you recovered from it and how ready you were to silver him some more. Most humans would be cowering in fear, but you were pissed, I could see it in your eyes. You are quite the little warrior. My little spitfire." He looked like a proud peacock, which I thought was odd. He changed expressions suddenly. "I do wonder why he was so taken with you. I understand, physically why, but he seems more so than what would be normal, for having seen you only tonight. Did he say anything to you before he attacked you?"

"Only that he already knew my name and that I was sweet." I shivered in disgust. "Then he just gripped the shit out of my wrist." Eric took the offended limb and examined it. There were bruises forming. Great. If I ever find that prick Compton alone...He looked at the bruises and seemed to ponder something.

Almost absentmindedly he said, "You would heal quickly if you took a little of my blood." What?! Okay, this much, I was warned about, by Kvelin, actually. If they gave you their blood, they could track you. And feel your emotions. No way.

"Uhm, thank you, but I think I'll be okay. I'll probably just take an ibuprofen and be fine." Or a fairy healing potion. Whichever.

"Yes. That is fine." He said tersely and dropped my arm. Wait, had I hurt his feelings? I walked to my purse on the chair closest to us, which had magically appeared there. Did he bring it with him when he dragged me in here? I mentally snickered at the thought of him holding my little red wristlet on one hand, pulling me with the other. I pulled, rather summoned two ibuprofen out of it and he quickly barked out an order for a water to be brought in to someone on the phone.

Two seconds later, Pam threw the door open. Jesus-glad we moved. "Master. All is well? I have Bill...contained until you are ready." He took the water from her, opened it and handed it to me and watched eagerly, waiting for me to take the pills and sip the water. I think he may have massaged my throat to make it go down smoother if I took any longer. The second I took one gulp,

"Better?"

"Yes thank you."

"Suzie. Are you okay? I wasn't sure what all happened and Bill was...unable to tell me." Hmm, that was curious. Eric quickly filled her in on what had happened, paying great detail to my tirade and threat to re-silvering Bill. That must have really floated her boat because she looked at me like she was in love with me.

"I have new found respect for you. I think we will have much fun together. Maybe you should stay for Compton's punishment."

I held up my hands. "No! Thanks. I will pass. In fact, Eric, I'm sorry. I will have to owe you a dance another night. I feel a bit tired and would like to go."

"I don't blame you, Suzie. Yes, rest. Then we can start fresh tomorrow."

Pam piped up. "I will leave an itinerary for you in my office across the hall. You can use that area to work and the computer, until we get you your own workspace."

"Sounds good. Thank you. See you both tomorrow night." I walked toward the door.

"I am walking you to your car." The gallant gentleman. I nodded my approval, or rather my acquiescence.

We made our way out and I saw Amelia chatting with another vampire at the bar. "Hey Amelia, I'm heading out. Are you okay? Are you staying?"

She turned to me and all the blood left her face, "Suzie-what the hell-?" She looked toward Eric.

I held up my hands "I'm fine. It wasn't Eric, in fact, he saved me. But I'm fine, can I fill you in on the details tomorrow? I'm pretty tired."

"Shit, girl. I'm sorry. But, yeah, I'm staying till close with Pam, then we'll go hang out" giant wink "at her place. I'll be fine. You sure you're okay to drive? Want me to call your cousin?"

Eric took my arm again. "Yes, Miss Stackhouse, I would gladly drive you home."

"No, no thanks, guys, really. I'm fine. I'm ten minutes from here, I'll be okay." We exchanged hugs and headed towards the door. "You really don't have to-"

"Shush. Just keep walking or I'll carry you."

"Hmff." He winked at me, knowing he had irritated me. Once we got to my car, he took the keys from my hand and opened the door. If I would have gone any slower, I think he would have placed me on the seat, too. "Well, I had an interesting night." I gave him a lopsided smile. "Thank you for the job, I'll be here bright and early tomorrow."

He squatted down and leaned into the car. I held my breath as he leaned in close enough for his hair to brush my nose. I picked up his scent again and I inhaled. I may have even made a little noise, since he looked at me strangely. He reached over, grabbed the seat belt and latched it for me. Oh.

"I had a very interesting night as well, and look forward to many more in your company, Suzie." He brushed his lips across my forehead and I felt those light sparks. "Goodnight." He shut the door and I started the car, though I'm not sure how since my neurons had stopped firing when I felt his lips on my skin. As I drove off, with Fangtasia in my rear view mirror, I had a feeling of foreboding. How was I going to keep my hormones, hell my emotions, in check, long enough to fulfill my goal? I was in deep shit.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Jeez, it just dawned on me, my last 2 chaps haven't had A/Ns on them. That's a switch. But I'm so gd obsessed with this story, I completely forgot. Thanks so much for the reviews-they are the wind beneath my wings lolzeez. This took me some time because I swore (to myself) I would try to develop a plot versus lots of fast forwarding through the day, to when Eric shows up. Because that's what I _want_ to do lol. So this chapter was long and boring with lots of non-Eric filled details. Initially I had it all as one chapter that was way too long, just so it could include him. But I thought better of it and just split it up. So the next chapter will be chock full o' Viking goodness. I hope to have it up by tomorrow night. Again, I thank you truly for all your support. These are not my characters, I merely borrowed them from Charlaine. Pardon any grammatical and or spelling no-nos. Hopefully, I didn't lapse into calling her Sookie when she's supposed to be Suzie and vice-versa. I tried not to. Kay love you buhbye.**

On the way home, the lust-filled fog that had covered my brain lifted and I was able to think clearly. And I felt awful. I felt like I had betrayed my family and Eric and Pam. When I agreed to this, as if I had much choice, I had a clear cut goal to infiltrate the enemy camp and get the information we needed to save my family from war. But the enemy was supposed to be conniving and depraved, not funny, honorable and so ridiculously gorgeous. He did not seem the type who would get involved in any unnecessary fairy bullshit. My grandfather had said he was honorable and he was right.

Both he and Pam seemed like normal, decent people, for vampires. They never attempted to drain me or rape me (other than molestation by flirting), like I had been taught all my life. Only Bill Compton had acted shady, and Eric made it seem like he was not in the normal mainstream.

When I pulled in to the drive, I parked and slumped forward, head in my hands. What the hell was I supposed to do? I hated lying and deception myself, so for me to have to concoct the stories I was feeding them was hard. Though I did try to have some bit of truth in everything I said. I was seriously confused and torn. I needed to talk to my fairies. I moped my way out of the car and up the stairs.

Judging by all the lights on, somebody was up. When I closed the door, I could hear Claudine singing and I called out to her. She came dashing in and hugged the breath out of me. Her words came out in a rush "I'm so glad you're home, safe and sound. Hey!" She held me out at arms length. "Why is your cheek all puffy and your head bruised and scraped up? Sookie! Are you okay? Tell me what happened."

"I'm fine." I briefly told her a few sentences about the Compton situation. She seemed to calm down when I assured her I felt fine and that he would be punished for his actions.

"However I mostly want to say, thanks _SO_ much for telling me how unbelievably gorgeous Eric is! That little tidbit would have been good to know before I went in like a lamb to the wolves' den."

She gave me a devilish grin that didn't look one least bit apologetic. "Sookie, there is no way, if we had warned you, you could have gone in as naturally as you did. You get such a chip on your shoulder whenever a hot man comes around. You would have had an attitude a mile wide before you even walked in there."

"Regardless, I like to know all aspects of the situation-"

She foofed me-"Oh, get over it. Moving on..."

"Gah! You guys make me crazy." I let out a big sigh for show, but I knew she was probably right. "Okay, then I guess you also had a meeting without me and decided to send Amelia tonight."

"Yes, sorry about that. It was a last minute idea Claude thought of actually. She's been there a few times and knows Pam, so we thought it might help."

"It did, actually. It was a little easier to look natural than if I had been alone." "So, how did you meet tall, blonde and deadly?"

"Amelia and I were dancing and he was behind me and I ran into him."

"He's something, isn't he?"

I blushed "Erm, yeah."

"Oooooh, Sookie, are you blushing? Did something happen?"

"No! His is my boss now, you know. I imagine it's not good to screw around with your boss. Not to mention I am there in the first place on business, not pleasure."

"Who cares? A-it's not really your job, it's a cover. And B-no one said you couldn't have fun while you were accomplishing your mission." Eyebrow wiggle. "Plus it may make him more pliable to tell you information." The thought of using sex for that made me sick and I told her so. "Yes, but if you want the sex and he just happens to blabber..." That reminded me of my current conundrum, and I'm embarrassed to say, I got a little teary-eyed. "Cousin, what's wrong? Did I offend you?" She took my hand.

I shook my head,"I just, I don't know now, Claudine. It was all so clear cut before I went there tonight and now I feel awful using them. He and Pam were so normal with me. They seemed like people I would have fun hanging out with. They offered me a job and were very upfront about everything and here I am with all of my deception and I don't like it. I feel like I could just ask Eric about Breandan and if I tell him why I'm here, he might tell me what we need in return. If I put it to him like that, he would know how much I was trusting him by telling him who I was and it may make him want to help." I was bargaining with myself and Claudine was shaking her head. It's just-you know, I was raised to think that vampires were such evil creatures who would kill you without the bat of an eye. Yet they weren't like that at all." I said quietly.

"To us, they are. Maybe your half diluted blood is just the perfect amount to make them not want to instantly kill you, but for the full-bloods, they are deadly. Whether it's because they are inherently bad or because our blood makes them bat-shit crazy is irrelevant in our eyes. They will kill us, period. I've seen it with my own eyes, Sookie."

That reminded me, "He did taste my blood."

"What?! How, why?"

"When I banged my head. Eric, was uhm...cleaning the wound and stopping the blood. He didn't get all blood-lusty or anything. Though he might have been a little...excited" she snorted "he didn't bite me. He was very sane."

"Ew that he 'cleaned' you. Okay, well I guess we know about your blood's effect on them now." She thought for a few seconds, "I guess this was a good trial then. We didn't anticipate you being injured and your blood being exposed to them without biting."

"Yeah, hopefully that will only be a one time thing, so we don't get to learn the limitations on that too much more."

"So, how did the job thing come about?"

"I mentioned I recently moved here and needed a job, either as a waitress or bartender. We had been talking a little at that point, so he and Pam discussed it and said they had been needing someone to work with their human staff. And that was that. I filled out all my paperwork and I start tomorrow. I can work as little or as much as I want, as long as I get my stuff done. I know I'll end up staying later just to see if I can learn more that way." I trailed off and sighed, feeling like a traitor for the millionth time that night.

"Did you use your magic at all?"

"I did, actually a few times and no one sensed it."

"Good." We talked about a few more things, but I was getting really tired.

"Hey, do you have any of that healing tea for my bruises?"

"Good idea! You definitely need it after tonight."

"But make it a little weak. I don't need him to see me 100% healed tomorrow. That would be unusual for a human."

"Sure thing." She poofed a cup up right into her hand, then poofed the hot tea into it and handed it to me. She conjured up a few cookies and gave me those, as well. "The tea goes great with these. Make sure you eat them all." That was fine by me, I was a little hungry, so a snack before bed was perfect. Before she went to her room she stopped and looked thoughtful. "And Sookie? Don't worry too hard about the task in front of you. Sometimes things that seem so muddled become clear in time. The answer you sought was there all along."

"Uhm okay, Grandfather. When did you start talking in riddles like him?"

She smiled at me "Goodnight", and closed her door.

"Weirdo" I swigged my tea and scarfed the cookies. They were really good. I placed my dishes in the sink, left the front light on for Claude and locked the door behind me. I felt like I was floating on the way to my place. I'm not sure how but I managed to get changed and washed up and into bed. I was so sleepy, yet so floaty-almost euphoric. I snuggled in and was out like a light.

I woke up the next morning trying to catch the tail end of a dream. Eric was in it and we were in the office at Fangtasia? But, I was wearing the sleep clothes I had worn to bed. And he was shirtless. Guh-that was a vision I wanted back, but I couldn't recall any other particulars and it was fading the more I woke. Damn. That was weird. Duh, Captain Obvious, dreams are rarely normal. I smiled and sat up. I felt like I had slept for days-in a good way, not the icky, too much sleep way. It was almost noon. Wow, no wonder I felt rested. But it was best I sleep in. I would be having late hours from now on and there was no real need to be up earlier. I looked at my reflection in the mirror-my cheek was a little dark, but not very swollen and the abrasion on my hairline was pink but mostly healed. The bruises on my wrist from where dickhead gripped me so hard were yellowed. Good. I stretched and set about preparing for my day.

I worked out, went grocery shopping, took a shower, ate, cleaned up, painted my nails and toes. I had never lived alone before and it felt weird, but nice. There was no training that I had to go to, no being summoned to attend court or boring luncheons, though I did miss my grandfather. I forgot to ask Claudine when was best to pop in at the palace for a visit. Time did not pass the same there. It moved very slowly there-five minutes in the Fae realm could be half the day here. It was safe to assume I should save that for my day off.

While moving through my chores, I was still mulling over my position with Eric. I rehashed everything I could think of. What my grandfather told me about Breandan and Eric meeting; about all the things I had told Eric about "Suzie" and how he had been protective of me several times last night, eventhough he barely knew me. And how my task was somehow ordained by The Council. Wait-what was it my grandfather had said about his promise of my servitude? I could be a spy, a fighter, or an emissary. I had a choice? So, they knew enough of the future to know, twenty years from when he made that promise they would need me, but not what role I would play? Bullshit. Unless maybe they were they leaving it up to me to decide. That gave me a little hope. If I played the emissary card, I could tell him the truth. I could just say who I was, that I had been sent by The Council. He wouldn't dare harm me, right? He would know that would be inviting war from Niall and then have to answer to The Council for harming me. I wasn't sure. But I felt a little better now, knowing I had options. I could bide a little time, get to know him better to determine the next plan of action anyway. I felt a huge weight lift off my shoulders.

Suddenly in a great mood, I popped over to my cousins'. Claudine wasn't there. But Claude was and he was in the shower. He had the radio playing and he was belting out right along with Celine, so he had no idea I was there. I pointed at his toothpaste and summoned a little pixie dust. I mentally conjured what I wanted to happen and felt the tingle of my magic build up then shoot out my finger. Heheh. I'll find out soon enough if it worked.

I popped back to my place and set to finding something cute to wear to work tonight. Should I wear jeans now, then change to something nicer once the bar opened? Yes. Hmmm...rifling through my new purchases, I picked a deep red slip dress that was not quite knee-length, but had a slit that went to mid-thigh. It was sleeveless, but the straps were wide enough to hide a bra and the scalloped edge, detracted from the neckline, which was pretty low, but again, made sweeter by the big black bow right under the bust, in an empire waist. Mostly demure with a little bit of sex. I was working, not picking up dates. I grabbed a sparkly black cardigan and some low-slung heels to go with it and put it all in a bag with my "makeup and hair-to-go bag", as Claudine called it. To wear now, I just put on a pair of dark jeans (minus the silver chain in the pocket) with a tightly fitted plaid shirt and slouchy leather boots. Comfy. I headed out for my first day on the job.

* * *

Within my first two hours there, I had produced a schedule for the next three weeks, created an organized system for requests for time off (versus the hundreds of post it notes all over the desk in Pam's office) and a new floor plan for more effective serving. Judging from what I had seen last night, the vampires tending bar had exceptional memory for what almost every person there ordered to drink. If the tables were organized in such a way that they could see all of them at a glance, they could predict who needed what, before the waitresses even took refill orders. It would also prompt the servers not to overlook any human refill needs, if they were to busy fawning over the vampires to hopefully get lucky.

So, I moved the tables into a V shape, the widest part being closest to the bar, tapering inward to end in a point at the dance floor. That widened and moved the dance floor out and allowing for more high top tables against the wall, which I dug out of the back room and put out. I figured, if Pam and Eric hated it, I could point out the new floor plan was fang-shaped and that would sell them. I also typed up a new policies and procedures to hand out to the wait staff, on how they were to dress and act and the consequences if they failed to do so, pending Pam's approval.

I was peeking through some of their ledger reports, just to get an idea how they kept their books, when I heard some of the staff filing in. No one came by the office, so I thought I would wait to introduce myself until Pam arrived. Their financial records were a bit of a mess. I could see they had an accountant to make sure the overall taxable revenue was on the up and up. But there were a lot of holes in their daily, weekly, monthly system. And from some of the random figures I tallied, a lot of it didn't add up. I mulled that over for a bit. I was hoping my suspicions were wrong. But if they weren't I may have a possible solution.

Apparently more time passed than I thought since Pam walked in- at least, I thought it was Pam. She was wearing a pale pink track suit with white mom sneakers and had light makeup on with her hair pulled back into a smooth ponytail. "Good evening, Suzie. Aren't you deep in thought." She smirked at my mouth that must have been hanging open and sat in the chair in front of her desk. I was surprised there was no power trip, where she told me to switch spots with her. "Shocked I don't dress like Elvira in real life?"

I nodded, "You look so cute." Her eyebrow shot up at that.

"Cute?" She gave a quiet laugh and it softened her whole face.

"Aw, Pam, you're so pretty when you smile like that" I gushed. I was laying it on thick, but I liked teasing her and I had a feeling I could only get away with it when we were alone. She had to keep her hard-ass persona around the other employees.

"Why, Suzie, are you flirting with me? I am your boss, you know. You could sit on my lap and take dictation" she patted her leg. "It would win you some points, maybe a bonus."

I held up my hands and laughed "Okay, you win boss lady. I'll pass on the lap dance dictation." I looked at the clock, shortly after 7. "Can I show you where I'm at right now with some things?" I showed her the schedules, the time off request system and the policies and procedures form and she was impressed, which made me happy.

"This is exceptional, Suzie. I can't believe you got this done so efficiently and quickly."

None of it was exceptionally hard, but just needed someone to sit down, with no one else around, and get it done, and I told her so. "Now, I did a few more things. One I want to show you now, but promise you'll keep an open mind and listen to why I did it. The other, I'd rather wait till Eric gets here, if you don't mind, horribly, so I can say it just once."

"That is fair, but my curiosity is piqued."

"Come on." I lead her out and had her stand behind the bar, so she could see the desired effect.

She stood there motionless, her eyes the only thing moving-darting around to take in the new area. A huge fangy grin came across her face. "It's fang-shaped!"

I laughed. Of course, she would notice. Why did I doubt it? "But do you see the other benefit?"

Moving around to take it in from all angles, "The bartenders can see all the tables. And I like the addition of more tables against the wall as well as how much it opened up the dance area."

"The only thing I wasn't sure how to fix was the one row of booths. The only way I can think of to make them visible would be to put mirrors above them. But I wasn't sure if you would think that was tacky."

She grabbed me by my arms, "Suzie, that is a fantastic idea! This whole setup is fantastic, but putting mirrors in is a wonderful solution! Tacky, yes, but the whole premise here is based on cheese factor, why not enhance it? You surprise me at every turn. Are you sure you're human?"Heheh-awkward laughter from me. "Wait till Master sees this. Have you explained it to the humans?"

I shook my head no. "I was waiting till you got here, so I could get your approval on everything, then I thought we could have a little meeting. We can explain everything then."

She had her phone out and was wildly texting. Her phone immediately alerted a response. "There. Eric should be in soon."

Meanwhile, the humans were bustling around us, preparing for the night. I was getting some angry stares, which was confusing, so I dropped my shields. It was nothing but anger and resentment at who I was, and why Mistress Pam was so happy and buddy-buddy with me. Oh well, they'd find out soon enough.

We went back to the office. I showed her how I wanted to reorganize a lot of the filing and make things more paperless, which she approved. We were looking at some of the accountants paperwork, when I felt a black void approach us. It was the bartender from last night. "Good evening, Pam. Miss."

"Evening, Longshadow. This is Suzie, our new HR person and assistant."

He nodded at me tersely. "We met last night. The floor plan has been changed. It looks good." He looked down at what we were working on, his eyes scanning quickly. I thought I caught a slight furrow in his brow, but if I had, it was gone in a second. "Everything okay?"

"Yes. We will be having a meeting as soon as Eric arrives. Please go tell everyone." Another curt nod and he was gone.

"Oh, Pam. I just remembered I wanted to ask you how it went with Bill last night? His punishment. I wish I could have stayed. And helped, actually." I was still fuming.

She got a glassy look in her eyes and her fangs slid down. "It went well, Suzie. Very well. I enjoyed it immensely."

"I hope he learned his lesson. Prick."

She looked at me like I had an arm growing from my forehead. "I did not take you for one who would enjoy in such things."

"Normally, I'm not, but he just rubbed my the wrong way. He could have waited thirty seconds till I was back inside, if he truly wanted to talk to me, which I doubt. I'm sure he had less than honorable intentions. Even with a bar full of willing fanbangers, he'd rather take by force. If Eric hadn't stopped me-"

"Stopped you from what? This conversation sounds juicy already, what did I miss?" He butted in from the doorway, filling it up. Dear me, he looked even better tonight with dark jeans and a long sleeved black jersey and black motorcycle boots. I hoped the look on my face didn't show I was mentally devouring him. He walked-no, strutted, he definitely strutted in and sat down in one of the chairs. He looked me up and down very slowly, then winked. Apparently his eyelids were attached to my girl bits because I felt a flutter down there when he did that. And from the way his nostrils flared and his pupils dilated, he knew it. Dammit.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thanks for the lovely reviews and comments guys. They ramp me up. This is still a slower part of the story but at least Eric is in it. I want to get to some more action. Especially the romantic sexy stuff. I do listen to your suggestions, hence the extra load of Pammer time in this chapter. I love her. I will try to get another chapter up by tomorrow, maybe sooner, if possible. I do have some chores and things I should do lol. The litter boxes won't clean themselves hahaha. As always, characters are property of not me, and I have no beta, so pardon any word crappery. Love you. P.S. Anyone else love that Tard Kitty (short for Tarder Sauce) with the grumpy poo face? I love her! So much, in fact, I ordered Xmas cards with her on them. Random, I know. ^..^**

"Suzie and I were just speaking of Bill's punishment and she sounded like she wished to join in."

"Oh, did she? I will have to remember that for next time. Who knew our Suzie was a sadist. Tsk tsk. Does that only include corporal punishment or does it extend into your bedroom habits? I have a paddle in my desk drawer, with your name on it, if that's the case. I believe Pam does, too."

"Stop!" I flushed as red as a tomato. "TMI and thank you, no it does not extend there, if it's anyone's business."

Pam, taking her cue from Eric's torture,"Really, Suzie, you should have just told us you're into that. We're very open here" she lightning fast, laid a paddle, a riding crop and a cat o' nine tails on her desk. Fondling the riding crop obscenely, "Oooh, let's get Compton back in here and you can make him your bitch." She threw the crop at me and I instinctively caught it.

"Ohmigod, you guys stop it!" I stomped my foot, "this is creepy and you're just trying to get a rise out of me."

They both snickered at me, "You're too easy. Pam and I are going to have a lot of fun with you. Tell me, when you blush, do you blush all over?"

I swatted his leg, then her butt lightly with the crop and threw it on the desk. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

In unison, with equal enthusiasm, "Yes!"

I sighed. "Okay, kiddies, when you're done acting like horny teenagers let me know. Because I had a lot of things I wanted to go over with you and we need to hustle if we're going to fill in the rest of the staff." I put my best serious parent voice on.

"I like it when she's bossy, Eric, don't you? She would make a good dominatrix." He nodded his agreement. They had to get one last dig in, but they both sobered up.

I quickly explained what I had done today and he was as pleased by it as Pam had been, maybe even more. They seemed to give me carte blanche when it came to anything involving human staff, as long as I ran it by them before it became permanent. I asked him if he had seen the bar yet, and told him the new layout, which made him hop up to go look. He was gone maybe thirty seconds and was back.

His eyes were wide and he had a million watt smile. "Suzie it looks fantastic! What a clever idea-the bartenders will be able to see every table. And you made room to add more tables and expand the dance area! Plus, it's shaped like a giant fang!" He beamed.

"The only tables they won't be able to see, since they're all attached, are the booths. I was wondering if we put mirrors above those, then the bartenders could see the tables that way..." He was very still for a long moment and I was beginning to wonder if he hated the idea.

"We should make the whole ceiling mirrored. Paint the dance floor red, in a tear or blood droplet shape. When you look into the mirrors from below you would see a fang with a drop of blood at the tip!" He looked at both of us, eager and pleased with himself.

I almost fell over, at the sight of Pam clapping her hands together like a little girl in excitement. "Master, that is excellent."

"Suzie, would you oversee the construction during the day? I would like to have them here Monday, but they will need to start in the morning. Would that be possible? I know it is not the hours we discussed, so I would pay time and a half."

"Eric, please. It's no problem at all. I'll just work in here, while they do their thing. There's no need to pay me extra. We are closed Monday, so it's no inconvenience at all, since I won't have to stay late."

He pulled out his phone, dialed, barked out a few orders to be here at 10am Monday, that a detailed email would follow and hung up, with out so much as a how do you do. "That's settled. His name his Herveaux. He and his team should be able to get it done in one day."

"Uhm, not trying to put my nose where it doesn't belong, but that seems a little unrealistic, to get it all done in a few hours? I would have estimated at least a week."

"He will get it done." Oh. Okeedoke. "Shall we attend the meeting now? We only have an hour left, before opening." We three headed out and while Pam and Eric headed to the front of the seating area, I headed to the back. I was very glad my mental shields were very strong in that moment. I didn't need my telepathy to read the thought,s based on the stares I was getting. I wanted to listen in on the human minds to hear if I was going to have any genuine trouble with anyone. Everyone there followed me with their eyes. I smiled politely and took my seat. There were three other vamps tonight. Longshadow, a red haired male and an exotic looking, tall woman. I couldn't read them.

From the others, the overall vibe was resentment. Most wondered who I thought I was, hanging with _**their**_ vamps and what exactly my position here was. And whatever it was, in order to get the job without working my way up, I must be sleeping with Eric. Or Pam. A few girls were nice. They just seemed curious as to who I was and if I would be fair to work with. Eric started right in. He went over the new policies and procedures, that everyone must read and sign them. Everything contained within would be effective tomorrow. Pam piped in with the schedule and requests protocol. Almost every mind there was thinking 'thanks a lot bitch' about me. I wanted to laugh. I was ruining their good thing.

As the meeting wound down, "I would like everyone to meet Suzie Stackhouse. She is our new Human Resources Specialist and is also assistant to Pam and myself. She has the authority to oversee all wait staff. If you have a problem, go to her. She represents us so I expect you all" he gave a pointed glare all around the room "to give her the same respect you give us. If I hear this is a problem and Pam or I have to talk to you about it, you will not be pleased with the outcome. Understood?" Boy he could command a crowd. Of course, they all agreed to 'the master' and the meeting was adjourned.

Once everyone went about the usual nightly duties, Pam slid up next to me. "What was the other thing you wanted to show us but were waiting for Eric?" He came up behind her and looked inquisitive. "There is more?"

"Uhm, can we go in the office?" I could tell the other vampires were listening but trying not to look like it. I dashed over to Pam's office and grabbed some of the ledgers and reports I had been looking at earlier and met them in Eric's office. Shutting the door, I put the paperwork in front of them. They looked at the stack, then me.

"Care to fill us in, or do we have to read through all of this first?"

"Okay, so I know you guys may or may not believe me. I'm the new kid on the block after all, so I highly recommend you have your CPA check this out, because I could be wrong."

"What? Get to the point, what is it?"

Jeez, crabby. "I think you guys are seriously missing some revenue. If you look at the last month, the numbers make no sense. You brought the same bar till in on a Saturday, as you did the previous Tuesday? That seems improbable." Now I had their attention. "Unless you really are busier on a Tuesday than a Saturday. The same thing applies to Friday, the week before. On every one of these weeks, in this stack anyway, there is one day where the revenue intake doesn't add up. Look, this week, it's Sunday, here on this one it's Friday. It seems to only be one day per week to be less conspicuous. And who's to say there aren't several more days during that same week, just in smaller amounts. Basically, you guys make so much money, you haven't noticed." Before they could get offended, "It can be very easy to lose sight of a few hundred dollars" closer to a thousand "when you bring in $15,000-$17,000 a week. The bigger concern is how long has it been going on and are there other areas it's missing from. This is just your bar tallies. It doesn't include your price for admission intake. It could be much more than just what is here. Can I ask who does your daily and weekly books here?"

"Long Shadow." Uh oh.

"Pam, did you notice the extra interest he showed this evening, when we were in your office?"

She narrowed her eyes at me, "I didn't then, but now I recall it, yes." She turned to tell Eric, "He came in the office while she and I were going over some things, but at the particular moment, she did have some financial printouts laid out. He seemed inquisitive."

Eric started growling, his fangs had popped down and he stood up.

"Wait. If you're going where I think you're going, please listen a second. That could be very dangerous for me. If you go beat his ass and fire him, where do you think will be the first place he goes?" They both looked at me as if I were speaking Pig Latin. "Hello? Me! He will want to exact revenge for blowing his cover, if in fact, it is him doing it."

"Suzie, I would forbid him from harming you and I would ban him from stepping foot back in here. He would never be so foolish to go against me-"

"Just like he would never be so foolish as to swindle money from you?"

They both growled this time, fangs down, looking ten shades of pissed and turned toward me. Well, shit. I immediately felt sweaty. Recover, Sookie. "I'm sorry, I meant no disrespect. My point was that he's obviously a cocky bastard who thinks he's above getting caught at anything. He's blinded by it if he had the balls to try to fuck with you guys." That seemed to pacify them for the moment. He sat back down. Mental sigh of relief-they were not two I wanted to piss off. "Would you allow me to try to do some reconnaissance? Meanwhile you could have your accountant look the files here over to get an actual amount he owes you and how long he's been doing this?" He and Pam looked at each other for a bit and seemed to be communicating without talking.

Looking back at me, "I will allow this plan of action. However, if it takes too long, I will be taking the more direct approach."

Pam, who had been quiet, "We could 'detain' him in the basement while we investigate." She looked excited at that prospect, while I tried not to think of what types of things happened in the basement that made her excited.

"No. I think it best to let him continue as if nothing is amiss. It would be advantageous to catch him in the act. Let's keep an exact body count of who comes through the doors to know how much we should take in there. I will have Thalia keep a tally of how many total drinks she makes and tell Longshadow the same. We will see how many they report. It will make no sense if he says fifty and she says two hundred. I will tell them we want to change the drink prices and so need an estimate on how many we sell per night. I will stay out on the floor most of the night to watch him and see if the numbers he reports are accurate."

We hashed out a few other things, then Pam zipped out to go change into her Elvira-wear.

"Suzie, will you be leaving now?"

"No. I brought a change of clothes. I thought I'd like to stay and see how it all works behind the scenes."

His eyes lit up. "Good." He seemed to struggle with something for a moment. "Thank you for the work you have done today and for finding the discrepancy with our books. I apologize if we seem ungrateful, it is just hard for us to think we could be fooled by someone, especially be a vampire. And it is embarrassing that our own arrogance allowed this to happen."

"I understand."

"Yes, you do. You seem to be very understanding of a lot of things, Miss Stackhouse. You are not like any human I have ever met." He came around the desk to where I stood. "You have never met vampires before, yet you have taken everything you have seen and heard the last twenty four hours in stride. You were attacked by Compton and you brushed it off with barely a second thought, other than your desire to have been a part of his punishment. You have been subject to our tempers-two vampires staring you down, growling at you, with their fangs at the ready and yet you stand up to us." He leaned in to me and gave me a big sniff, then grabbed my chin to bore his eyes into mine. Damn those ocean blue eyes of his and what they did to my knees. "Yes, you are quite unique." Now would be a good time to tell him my little secret, but I couldn't quite get my lips to form the words. Maybe because I didn't want them preoccupied, since he was looking very much like he was going to kiss me.

Before I could say anything, even if I wanted to, or get kissed, like I definitely wanted to, Pam flung the door open. She looked at us as we were and smirked. "Aww, did I interrupt?"

He never took his eyes off me, "What do you want, Pamela?"

"The- Sophie Anne is on the phone for you." He cursed and dropped his gaze. "It seems someone has tattled on you regarding a punishment received last night."

Wait-what? "You have got to be kidding." He clenched his jaw.

"Nope. Are you really that surprised?"

He sighed and went around his desk to the phone. Pam took me by the arm, "Now, did I hear you say you brought a change of clothes?" I got it-the phone call was none of my business. "I would love to see your outfit. Come, you can change in my office."

"Let me guess, with you still in it, right?"

"Of course." She led me in and I took out my dress that I'd put in the small closet. "Ooooh-that's pretty. I can't wait to see it on."

"Okay, if you're really going to stay, turn around."

"Fine. Spoilsport." But she did.

I made quick work of swapping outfits. When I was done, I told her she could turn around. Strangely, her fangs were down and she had a weird gleam in her eye. I ignored that bit of weirdness. "I did want to fix my hair and put some makeup on."

"Here." She motioned for me to sit, and pulled a stand up mirror out of the desk. "Do your makeup, I'll put your hair up. Let me see this bag of yours." She dug through it and found what she needed so I leaned in and worked on my face. Eric came in-does anyone knock around here?-and sat down in the other chair with a huff. "How did that go?" Pam asked, picking up the mirror, so I could see my hair. Very nice-a french twist.

"Ridiculously annoying. Apparently, he was pissed I punished him over a human. I explained to Sophie-Anne that, in my club, we do not prey on humans, especially members of my staff. If they offer themselves and they choose to leave the premises together, that is fine. But there is no biting here and he knew that. She seemed appeased and said he was mostly pissed because the human slapped him with some silver and he wanted her punished for that. I told her how I handled my business was none of his business. And that was that. She knows I am right."

"Wait. So Bill Compton told on you? And he wanted me punished for defending myself against his unwanted attentions?!" Oh, I was getting pissed.

"Compton often takes the whiny, pathetic way out. It's of no consequence as he has no power or authority. Besides, we can use your anger to torture him with at a later time. So, take it easy and don't get your pink, lacy panties and matching bra in a wad-"

Eric's head snapped around to her. "You've seen them?"

"Oh yes, she gave me quite a strip show. Very sexy body, Master. You don't know what you missed."

I sighed a very big sigh and rubbed my temples."How did you know what color my underthings are, Pam? Did you peek?"

"No, I kept my word. I didn't turn around. However, I got a very nice reflection from that." She pointed to a dark abstract print behind glass that, from here, looked like it reflected very well. She grinned at me and winked. "Hurry up, we need to let the masses in soon" and sashayed through the door.

I could only shake my head. Eric threw his head back and did one of his belly laughs. "Yes, I do believe this place has gotten a lot more interesting with your arrival." He offered his arm, "Shall we?" I took it and headed out for my first night at Fangtasia.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Helloooo my lovelies. Another uber long chapter that had to be split up, so yes, I ended on a cliffie but the next chapter should be close behind. If you guys haven't noticed, my pattern for posting is usually concentrated on weekends and Wednesdays. So, just a little heads up, if you wanted it. Oh, extra big Viking smooch for SVMlover1378 and villanh who pointed out I used Sookie's name, versus Suzie in Eric's convo with her. I knew I was going to do that, at some point! You guys are so awesome (and patient) about understanding when I screw something up. I try to keep the reigns tight on my wild horse of a brain, but it's a struggle. lol I really struggled with this chapter and I don't want to spoil, but you'll know why when you read it. As always, I love you and thank you all so much for the reviews and love back. Pardon any grammar or spelling, or Sookie/Suzie eff up; no beta. I do not own these crazy lovable characters, C Harris does, lucky hookah. *does the hokey pokey out of room with Santa hat on* (off to try to get some shopping done)**

The Procurer

Ch. 9

"By the way, you do look lovely. I only wish I had been able to see what lies underneath,"

I harrumphed at him. "Moving right along. Where do you want me to work?"

"You do realize you aren't obligated to stay tonight? You have done more than enough work today. You've accomplished a lot."

"Yes, thanks, but I want to see how it all fits together. I'm just like that. I like to see from A, how you get to Z and the like. And I'm not afraid to work. Besides, this is fun."

"I'm glad to hear you think so. I feel the same. I have fun around you, and Pam has taken a liking to you, more than I've ever seen her have-when there's no sex involved."

"Ick. Oops, sorry. No offense. I definitely have nothing against who a person is attracted to. I have a male cousin who prefers men. I just meant, I have no persuasion for women."

"I see. Do you have a persuasion for men?"

"I guess." I felt my cheeks get pink. I didn't like where this was headed.

"You guess? You don't know?"

"Yes. I am attracted to men. Happy? I just don't have a lot of experience with-you know what? We aren't having this talk right now. Where did you say you want me to get started? I could go to the door with Pam." I was babbling, my voice higher than it usually was. A look of smugness-no, more like extreme satisfaction crossed his face for a split second, then he surprised me by getting serious.

"Yes, I think Pam would like that. We could have you do that, till you get bored of it." What no merciless teasing about my slip up of being inexperienced? Hmm, maybe he needed Pam around, to goad me. Or maybe he would tell her and they could gang up on me later.

We stopped at a chair I hadn't seen before, a throne. It was such a gaudy example of a throne.

"Oh, lord, don't tell me..."

"Oh yes, Miss Stackhouse. This is where I sit to enthrall the masses."

I bent over in laughter, "It's awful."

"I know, it's great, right?"

"How did I not see this last night?"

"Would you like the mysterious, fake answer for the patrons or the real one?"

"The real one please."

"It was being reupholstered."

I doubled over again. "Was the king's crushed velvet butt seat wearing out?"

He looked a little indignant. "A little." He flicked invisible lint off his shirt. "And I had it filled with memory foam."

Now I had tears gathering in the corners of my eyes. I held one hand on my belly and one hand in the air to signal I could take no more. He started to give in to my laughter with his own, when a single tear slipped out of my eye and down my cheek. Without a second for me to react, he reached out, grabbed the tear with his finger and popped it in his mouth. Weird.

But even weirder was the look on his face after he did it. A myriad of emotions displayed across his face in a flash. Hunger, recognition, anger, doubt, then fury, then a cold, emotionless stare as he looked me up and down as if he'd never seen me before. His fangs snapped down. Uhm, okay.

"You alright? I've never seen anyone taste tears before, did mine poison you?" I tried to joke.

"In more ways than you know, Miss Stackhouse." He practically spit the words out at me, grabbed my arm, very tightly and dragged me in four wide steps back to his office. He slammed the door so hard I was surprised it didn't split, locked it, and threw me down on the couch.

"Eric! what the hell?" I rubbed my wrist where he'd left a mark. "What exactly did I do that has you so pissed off, tossing me around like a rag doll?"

He said nothing, just paced back and forth. Several minutes ticked by. He would occasionally look at me with such hatred, I began to become more and more afraid, wishing I had my dagger, or at least the chain on me. Dammit-why had I allowed myself to become so complacent and trusting? They were nice, but I knew better than to let my guard down. I felt embarrassed. What would Kvelin say? Probably that I'm an idiot for letting my defenses down completely.

He stopped pacing for two seconds to pull his phone out and send out a text. Great. Was Pam coming in and they were going to lock me in the basement and punish me like they had Compton? Or just tie me up and drain me? I could always pop out of here if I had to, but I didn't want to abort this mission unless there was truly no hope. Since I wasn't restrained, or dead yet, there was still a chance I could talk to him. A few minutes later and he was still pacing and he still said nothing. I couldn't stand not knowing what was going on in his mind. I wasn't just going to sit here in silence.

"Okay, we've established you're sudden hatred of me. And while your method of wearing a hole in the floor in silence is super effective at communication, I need a more direct approach. Should I leave and come back when you're ready?"

I started to get up but found myself pinned back against the couch, beneath a very heavy, very angry vampire. "You're her aren't you?" He spat. "I knew you couldn't be human. I knew it was too good to be true." Before I could even wrap my brain around what he was saying, he had his hand around my throat and was sniffing my neck. He roughly scraped his fangs against my skin. "Is this what you wanted? Is this why he sent you here? To woo me with you, give me a taste of you and all he offered, to get me to take his side?" He wasn't blocking my air yet, just squeezing lightly enough to illustrate how easily he could take it away. Or pierce my jugular with his fangs in half a heartbeat.

So many things were running through my head. First was how the hell this could be the same creature that, only last night, was gently licking my wounds and so protective of me, even though he had just met me. Second was who and what the fuck was he talking about. Third was that he had obviously figured out I wasn't human, but how? Fourth was how I should get away from him, long enough to either explain or escape. I could well be mere seconds away from getting drained. Fifth and possibly the most disturbing was sadness. I was sad that, if I could not explain to him, that I would lose his respect and friendship.

I closed my eyes and willed myself to be calm. I breathed deeply. And out slowly. I repeated this several times till I felt the calm radiating through me and opened my eyes again. Eric had grown quiet. His hand had relaxed it's hold around my neck. He was looking into my eyes but this time there was no hate. Mistrust and anger, yes, but his emotions seemed to have shifted.

"Did you do that?"He looked at me strangely.

"What?" Now what had I done?

"The sense of calm that just washed over me. I was very angry, then I felt calmness all over..."

I smiled gently at him and felt a little pride. Had I? I've never done that before, so this was a nice way to find out about that little trick. "I guess so. I was only trying to calm myself but maybe I was able to push it through you, too. I've never done that before."

I had to make him understand and not hate me anymore. I couldn't take it. Here was my chance, I better take it quick I grabbed his shoulders. I wanted so badly to touch his face, but thought he might interpret that as an attempt to "woo" him. I could tell I made the right choice when I saw him flinch at my touch."Eric, I don't know who 'he' is, or what 'her' I am supposed to be. If you would let me up I could tell you everything. I do have a backstory, but I mean you no harm."

"How do I know you can't wield some magic on me like you just did?"

"Uhm, good question. I don't know. Can we at least sit up? It's a little hard to concentrate with all of you pressed down on me like that." Not even a hint of a smirk from him as I had hoped, but he did lift me up, so he was sitting next to me within grabbing, or killing distance. Gulp.

"Talk."

"My name is Sookie Suzannah Stackhouse-Brigant." A light of recognition in his eyes that softened his anger a little, then his mistrust came back.

"So, you are a fairy." Statement more than a question.

"A halfling-less actually. Niall's son, Fintan had children with my all human grandmother. My father was Fintan's child. My parents and brother were killed by the Water Fae when I was young. I was supposed to be with them when they died, but I managed to survive."

His eyebrows shot up at that and he looked confused. "Go on."

"Niall learned of my family after Fintan died. He begged Niall to take me from my grandmother to keep me from Breandan. He would have hunted me down until he knew I was for sure dead. Niall didn't want to, but did it out of duty to his son. Most everyone in Faery was against it, but-as he tells me you know him, then you know he does what he wants. I also like to think he did it to save me from a lifetime of torture; living on the human plane, in a podunk town like Bon Temps with special powers that would have been increasingly harder to hide with age. Anyway, he got permission from The Council and my fairy family kept me at the Royal Palace, hidden from all but a select few. So, they trained me most of my adolescent and adult life to fight against the water fae, vampire, all supernaturals. Great grandfather always said it was because I was a great warrior, but I have a feeling it was more so he could keep me out of their hair and burn off the stubbornness and hyperactivity I had-err, have." I corrected.

I caught the barely imperceptible flash of humor cross his face, then back to his no-nonsense, puss face. "The other day, I was told for the first time, that The Council made a deal with Niall that, in order for me to be allowed to stay in Faery, he must promise to offer me up as the sacrificial lamb, if there were to be impending war. I was to be the emissary, or spy or whatever was required at the time for them. Honestly, I think it was that I was considered expendable. Anyway, once it was learned you were consorting with Breandan, I was sent to infiltrate." Bad word choice.

His eyes narrowed, filled with anger again. Great. I just talked him down. He started to speak, but I held up my hand. "Please, let me finish." He gave a pissy, curt nod. I placed my hand on top of his, very lightly and he allowed it. I closed my eyes and let the calm wash over me again. When I opened them this time he was looking at me with a little awe so I knew he felt it again. This was cool. "I was sent to figure out why you had been seen meeting with him on three separate occasions. I was told you were a fair vampire. My great grandfather has respect for you. He just didn't understand why you would deal with Breandan. Please understand, while there may be some level of respect there, that does not mean he trusts you implicitly, as I'm sure you feel the same. While Niall is a very powerful, old fairy whose powers are many, he had to send me in, versus himself. And, rather then send me in to ask you directly, in typical fairy fashion, we had to go about it in a round about way. I have to say that is one trait I do not share with my family. They think in...a different way from others. Instead of saying or doing something straightforward, they approach it in a twisted, indirect manner." He snorted at that.

"We had no way of knowing how susceptible you would be to my scent or how my powers would hold up against your kind. So, I have been equipped with a masking spell. Fear of the unknown is a powerful thing. So, for them, it made more sense if I approached you as human, masking my scent and nosing around, to see what I could find out. I couldn't just waltz in as a halfling asking questions-especially not knowing your position in the Fae situation. If you were on Breandan's side, you could have killed me in a nanosecond. Or summoned him, then he could have used me against my great-grandfather. And that would immediately start a war. Please believe me when I say I had planned on telling you this, before you found out on your own, I really did. In the unbelievably short amount of time I've gotten to know you-and Pam" nice recovery "I like you guys. I didn't want all the lying between us and I wanted to be myself. In some pathetic attempt of being truthful, I kept a lot of my details as close to the truth as possible. I almost told you earlier, when you said I didn't seem quite human. But then you almost kissed me then Pam burst in...I got a little distracted."

"Is there anything else you should tell me? About yourself? Any powers I should be aware of, that could cause any of us harm?"

"Well, apparently I can now transfer my emotion to others. Also, I can teleport, and I am telepathic, though great grandfather thinks that is not a fairy trait."

His anger flared and his fists clenched. "You can read our minds?!"

"No, no! I mean humans only, not you guys. Though I didn't know that until I came here yesterday. I wasn't lying when I said I had never met a vampire before last night. Oops-wait that's not true. I do have a slight history with our friend Mr. Compton." I sheepishly told Eric the story of using him as my guinea pig two nights ago. I could tell he was still trying to be serious and scary but my description of that event was testing his will.

"And, I'm not sure if it's a fairy thing, or a telepathic thing or just a me thing, but I don't think I can be glamoured. Bill has definitely tried and failed. But, if you or Pam have tried, I can't tell. You guys definitely seem more powerful than him. If it would make you trust me more, you can try. If you succeed, you can ask me anything to see I'm telling you the truth. Just, please don't make me do something you don't think I would do voluntarily. Like cluck like a chicken. Or something...dirty." A corner of his mouth lifted.

"I haven't tried, though I am not sure about Pam. I will try. Do you go by Suzie?"

"I prefer Sookie. My family calls me that."

"Sookie" he repeated. It gave me chills to hear him say it. He grabbed my chin, to look into my eyes. "Okay, Sookie. Are you telling me the truth?" I could feel him pushing his will on me, a tingling on my brain, but nothing else. "Are you really Niall's kin, sent only to inquire; not as Breadan's bait?"

I blinked. "Yes. And no. Sorry, it didn't work. I can feel you trying to glamour me, but that's all."

I thought he might be mad, but he seemed more curious than anything. "Interesting."

"Now you see why it was important for me to try it out on my unsuspecting victim the other night. We really had no clue. Obviously any fairy around a vampire long enough to get glamoured never made it back to tell us about the experience." I shifted gears because it was killing me, "How did you know I wasn't human just now?"

"Your tears. They had a very fairy-like taste to them."

"But I cried last night, you didn't taste them then, why tonight?"

"The impulse just struck me, I suppose. If I had tasted them last night I would have known then."

"So my tears tasted fairy, but not my blood?"

"Your blood was sweet, arousing. But not craze-inducing, like full fairy blood. Unless the masking spell included your blood?"

"My grandfather said it couldn't do that. I was to prevent any vampire from tasting it at any cost. But as usual when I'm around you, all my training and sense seems to fly out the window." He seemed to like that answer as I finally got a smile from him. "But, who really knows. This is all new territory."

"Why wouldn't The Council just approach me, if they knew about me meeting Breandan? I would have to answer to them. Instead they sent you to attempt to find it out on your own? That makes no sense."

"If you find out, let me know."

He got thoughtful. "There must be an ulterior motive."

"So, will you tell me why you were meeting with him?" He didn't answer and his eyes got dark. "Eric, we are on the brink of war. My family has been trying to avoid it, but Breandan has been spoiling for a fight. Any information could help us. I don't know what he has told you, but we have tried many, many times to bring peace between us, but he wants none of it. If he's trying to bring you in to his fold, that means he is trying with other Supes as well, and we need to know if it will be an all out sabotage. The Council can only keep it at bay for so long. You know they rarely intervene, unless it's in small ways-like sending me here, regardless of the cost."

"He is not so much trying to win me to his side as he is blackmailing me." His mouth was set and he looked far away and angry. My mouth fell open. This is one angle we had not thought of-bribery and lies, yes, but not that he would try to blackmail Eric into helping him.

"Okay...What is he blackmailing you with?"

He was silent for a moment, then so quiet I had to strain my ears, "He has someone...I care for."

**A/N: See what I meant? About my struggle, I mean. I wanted to carry the ruse on a little longer. I toyed with the idea of Eric tasting her tears, knowing she wasn't who she pretended to be, but stewing on it for the evening. However, after some thought, I had to have him address it right away, since he's just a head on type of guy. He's not one to stew lol. So, a little sooner than I wanted, but there it is. Damn thing writes itself so I have to do what it says. Bossy. *kisses**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hi gang. Another installment of hurry-up-and-get-this-part-over-with-so-we-can-get-to-some-E/S-lemons! I am creeping along, as excited as you to get to some sweet lovin'. I think the next chapter should have some. They need it after the stress they've been through. I laughed my ass off at everyone threatening me for my "someone I care for" cliffy! Honestly, it never dawned on me to have it be a woman/love interest. I wouldn't do that because I hate angst, for the most part. I like them having each other's full attention. I will try to get the next chapter out by no later than Sunday night. I have a feeling the next chapter will flow easier because of the sexy times it should have. So, as always, I own nothing. Much love for the adds, comments, etc. you guys complete me 3 You know what's really annoying? When you get The Chicken Dance song stuck in your head. See?**

Ch. 10

The silence between us was thick. I broke it. "Oh. Shit."

"Yes. Shit is right. So, _that_ is why I have met with him." He slid off the couch and resumed pacing. "The first time we met, he only asked me to take his side. That the Sky Fae were plotting against him. With my help, he could win in a coup against them and have access to the riches and position that was rightfully his. Which he would then gladly use to pay me. As well as giving me any number of the 'spoils of war' I wanted, implying fairies on tap." My stomach turned in disgust that one of our own kin, greedy and demented or not, would use another of his kind that way. "I laughed at him and sent him on his way. I knew he was crazy and I wanted nothing to do with any infighting for anyone other than my species. The second time, he offered me a hybrid as a gift. A tantalizing treat, he said, in good faith as a preview of things to come. I laughed and sent him away again. I knew, even if I were to accept his gift" eww, I shuddered "with his state of insanity, it could have a some magic around it, or it's blood laced or poisoned, to force me to his bidding. This time I refused him, he was very angry. I thought it was going to come to drawing swords. But he left, swearing he would find a way to make me fight for him." He seemed to get angrier the further along in the story he got. "The last time, he had a package delivered. It was a hand with a ring on it. I knew the ring. It belonged to my brother, Alberik." The pain in his expression was heartbreaking. "When he met me that night, it was only to tell me he had him and that he would keep him and torture him, until the coup was done and I helped him win. The second he said that, I attacked him, but he disappeared, the coward." He spat. "That was five days ago. I can only hope they aren't punishing Alberik for my attack on Breandan."

I kept my mouth shut on that topic. Fairies loved torture, so they probably were. "Eric, I'm so sorry."

"Me too. I have no clue how he found out about him, but he knew, aside from Pam, he was the only other one I truly cared about." He ran his hands through his hair and sat back down, next to me. "That is why, when I tasted your tears, I thought he had sent you. Whether it was to tempt me or to spy, it didn't matter. I thought you were the hybrid he promised me. I associated you with Breandan and I would have killed you, Sookie." He looked a little worried.

I gulped, then tried a sheepish grin. "I was hoping I could tell you truth before you tried. I could have popped out of here, but I really wanted to get a chance to tell you everything."

"The only thing that kept me from killing you immediately was instinct. I knew you were that person you showed me over the last 24 hours, not Breandan's kind."

I patted his hand, and he absentmindedly took it and held it.

"So, now what Eric. What do we do next?"

He raised an eyebrow at me, "We?"

"Well, there's got to be a way to find out where your brother is. Maybe my great-grandfather will know of a possible hiding place. Or we can work some kind of magic." Celighn was a seer, maybe she could help. My mind was going to town thinking of all possible options.

"Sookie, I appreciate your offer, but this is best handled by me. I haven't even told Pam yet. I'm going to have to take her somewhere she can break as few things as possible, or at least not expensive things."

"You think Pam will be that upset?"

"I know she will. Not only is she still young, compared to me, which makes her more sensitive to reacting with anger in this type of situation; but she has her own, personal tie to Alberik."

"Oh. They were together?"

"Once. They were together for many years. They went their own ways, but will visit together and reunite, for a time."

"Oh." Getting back to the plan, "No offense, Eric, but you seriously think you can find out where he's being kept better than I can? I'm part fairy for pete's sake. I have magic and other fairies at my disposal." It suddenly dawned on me. "Uh, hello? Not to mention, Niall and the rest of my clan will want to help, as it will get you out from Breandan's thumb and indebt you to them. Sorry to put it like that, but you know that's how they'll look at it."

He was quiet, pondering what I'd said. "You are right. They sent you here to procure me, but in order to have me, they will have to get Alberik free. I think that is a fair trade. And I would be indebted to your family, if they did free him."

"Are you going to tell Pam? I know it's not my place to intrude on your side of the story, but I really want to stop the charade on my part. And it won't make much sense without you telling her about your brother."

He rubbed his temples. "I suppose not. I need to tell her." He sounded more like he was repeating a mantra.

"Would you like me to try my calming thing on her?"

"Intentionally doing it versus accidentally are two different things. She will not like that." I don't blame her, I wouldn't want someone making me feel an emotion that wasn't mine. "Let's forgo that, unless absolutely necessary. She is my child, so I can calm her. By force if necessary."

"Can I ask a personal question?" He nodded. "When you say brother, or child, how do you mean? As in, from your human life, or...?"

"Pam is my child, I am her maker. I made her vampire a few centuries ago as a companion. Alderik and I are brothers meaning, we share the same maker. Though he is only about 400 years old." Is that all? "He has always been a little naive. I never grew to know him very well, as he was always in Europe with our maker, but I still care for him as a brother and try to watch out for him."

"Where was your maker during all of this?"

Another pained look. "He met his final death a few years ago."

"Jeez, Eric. Again, I'm very sorry." Who knew vampires had all this drama, and had family, just like we did.

"Thank you. And thank you, for lack of a better expression, for being you. You could have just popped in here, staked me, then popped out if you wanted. But you didn't." Actually, that never occurred to me, not that I would have done it. I might be able to kill when necessary but I couldn't do it without a good reason. "While I don't appreciate being lied to initially, I understand you had little choice, between Niall and The Council's instructions and their underhanded way of doing things. And I believe you when you say you wanted to tell us the truth."

"I'm so glad you understand. I really was torn about deceiving you, after we got to know each other. I even had a talk with my cousin asking her how I could get around this whole thing. I wanted to come clean. I knew you were a fair man." I got a little shy after getting so lovey-dovey on him, but my head popped up when I remembered, "My cousins are here!" At his look of confusion, "I mean in this realm. My cousins Claude and Claudine stay in the human plane sometimes. Right now is one of those times and my apartment is near theirs. You have to promise me you won't drain them if you ever come across them!"

"I cannot make that promise, Sookie. It is in my nature. Surely they explained to you-"

"But I know you could restrain yourself. I'll get pictures and that way you'll know them."

"The easiest solution to that problem is if they stay far enough away that I can't smell them. Or use a masking spell, like you."

"That's a thought. Well, for now, let's just not get you guys too close to each other."

"That makes me wonder. What if you undid the spell you have, Sookie, so I could smell you? I think it would be safe enough to try, now that you know me enough to trust me and I know not to eat you." Eyebrow waggle, Gulp-that did things to me. "Unless you want me to. But, seriously, how long does the magic last? What if it one day just stops? I'd rather be prepared then bombarded with it all at once. And I think, if I handled your blood yesterday, I may be able to handle your scent."

"Yeah, but it's not like I could just be floating my fairy perfume out there for any vamp to get a whiff of. I'd still have to conceal myself to everyone but you. Maybe Pam, if she can control herself, too."

"Have you ever thought of trying to learn how to do it yourself, by your own volition? It would be a good training experience. You didn't know you could control other's emotions before now, did you?"

We were interrupted by a text alert on Eric's phone, which he ignored. After a minute went by, another came in. He rose, "I better answer. I'm sure it's Pam, wanting to know what the hell we're up to." Before he could make it to his phone, a third came in.

"Did you text her before? I thought for sure she was going to come in here and you two were going to tie me up in the basement-" Before I could stop the words from passing my lips, they were out. Dammit.

"Oh really?" He asked, his eyes twinkling, his eyebrows up to his hairline. He walked to the door and unlocked it, a split second before Pam zipped through it. I begged him with my eyes to discontinue his talk of my verbal slip-up. "Is this something you would be interested in, Sookie? Because Pam and I would love to indulge you in the basement, if that's the case." He then switched to an innocent look, like he didn't know the shit storm he'd started. Bastard.

"Did I hear correctly? Did you say we are taking Suzie to the basement? And why did you just call her Sookie? Actually, scratch that. I don't care why. Let's just talk about the three of us in the basement, shall we?" She sat next to me and lay her head on my shoulder. I shot up, "Ugh! You two! Can we get to the matter at hand, here? The plan?"

"My thoughts exactly! All I know is you two were right behind me half an hour ago, when we were opening. Then, you're gone for an eternity, and when I'm finally allowed to catch up, you are talking about having fun in the basement and calling her by a different name. Meanwhile, we haven't been watching our friend, as was 'the plan'. Or so I thought. Anyone want to fill me in?"

I had been slowly walking around the desk, so Eric was between Pam and I. "Sookie, you start."

She gave me an implacable look. "Yes, _Sookie_, please do." Her eyes narrowed at me, and she sat up straighter on the couch. I took a deep breath and started. I barely took in any air the whole time-just blurted it all out in a few, very long, run-on sentences. I left out Eric's part about why he was meeting with Breandan. I thought a few times, she looked like she might come up off the couch and rip out my eyes with her hands, but I got the whole way through my story without her saying a word or moving a muscle. Afterward, she still didn't speak for a moment. When she did, "So, you can fight? You can handle swords and weapons? Master, this is great! Now I really want to keep her. Can we?"

Hello? Had I fallen asleep and was dreaming? This was bizarre. I wasn't sure which surprised me more, her reaction or Eric's reaction to her reaction. He wasn't looking at her, but staring a hole into me. "What?"

"I'm just wondering what type of sorcery you use to make her not angry in any way. If anyone else had told the Pamela Ravenscroft _I know_ the same thing, she would have ripped their throat out. You-she just wants to keep. Amazing."

"If I may speak for myself, I'd like to answer that." He nodded his approval at her. "First of all, thank you ever so much for your faith in my ability to act calmly and with grace." She snarked at him. "You" she poked her finger into his chest "are not seeing the big picture. You really think The Council, all-knowing and omnipotent, would send a halfling-Fairy, no less," I wanted to object, but knew better "to perform some sneaky act of espionage? One that could have a huge impact on the Fae, creating a domino effect of trouble and thereby the rest of the Supe world? That they would pit her against you, or Breandan? Because they couldn't just summon you and say, 'Eric, what the fuck? What is your business with Breandan?' Which, by the way, you have yet to answer, but I'm getting to that. You don't think there's a bigger reason she was sent to you, other than this load of crap you two fell for?"

Eric looked annoyed at her tone, but thoughtful about the words themselves. "A bigger reason...I cannot imagine what." He looked at me for an answer.

"You've got me. I have no clue what that could be. I need to have a talky-poo with my cousins or pop to see my grandfather for any answers. And I'm not sure now would be wise."

"Yes, I would like to make it through this night and get on with our fact-finding mission regarding the missing money first. Since we've been open for an hour now and we haven't been on the floor to watch him, we need to get out there. But first, Eric, your side, now."

He sat down next to her on the couch and told her the whole thing, the whole time holding her hands. I watched as her fangs slid down in anger and tears of blood trailed down her cheeks. When he finished, she very quietly said, "Is that all?" He nodded. "Will you let me go? I need an outlet. Now"she said through gritted teeth.

It was then I realized he was actually restraining her by holding her hands. "Be careful. You know what not to do." He let go and she was gone.

"Eric! Will she be okay? I thought you said you wanted to tell her somewhere safe."

"She will be fine. I just bought the property behind this place. It has a run-down old warehouse and a few acres of neglected land. She will tear up some things there and come back. For now, it's best to let her blow off steam and stay out of her way."

"Okay, should we wait for her?"

"No, we've been away too long. Let's go out and stick to our original plan for this evening. We can hash out the rest later. Besides, now I need someone on the door. Shall we?" He gave me his arm again.

"First night at Fangtasia, take two?"

"Let's go catch a thief."


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Zomg-I kind of spread myself a little thin this weekend, what with my promises of another chapter by tonight. Normally, it wouldn't be a problem, but with a work xmas party and hangovers and then a family dinner, damn. But I would have rather been working on this the whole time, I assure you. Anyhoo- lemons 'ho! Finally! I was so excited. Please _DEFINITELY_ pardon any typos or miscreant wordly shenanigans as I am super tired and crossed eyed, but stubbornly wanting to get this chapter out. The next one should be shortly behind this one. I'm thinking Tuesday. As per usual, I own nothing, blahblah puke. You guys rock, love your comments and such-they bring me joy and laughter for reals. Hugs and zzzzz...**

Ch. 11

Eric walked me to the door, where I saw the red-headed vampire earlier from the meeting. "This is Clancy. Clancy, Suzie will work the door with you, until Pam comes back." He gave me a curt nod, but said nothing, so Eric explained. "Just make sure everyone coming in is of legal age. Keep a head count like we talked about earlier." Longshadow, gotcha. "And if you suspect anything, let Clancy or myself know."

"Got it." We had decided, we would keep the Suzie/Sookie inter-changeable. I figured Pam and Eric could call me either one they preferred. Though, for some reason I liked when Eric called me Sookie. With me there, the crabby ginger figured he'd have me do all the work, so he stood back, arms crossed, to stink-eye the crowd. About twenty minutes in to looking at license after license, I had already found two with fake i.d.'s. I signaled to Clancy and he would fangily escort them to the parking lot and tell them not to come back until they were of age. He didn't need to know I actually learned it by their thoughts.

Of course, I had to weed through all the thoughts from a lot of the regulars, or so they deemed themselves. They wanted to know who the hell I was, where was Mistress Pam and who was I fucking to get this job? Why was that always the first thing anyone thought of? I guess that's what the whole vamp addiction was-blood and sex. Hmm...Eric didn't seem like that, though. And while Pam pretended like that was all she was about, I knew there was more. But, I had to remind myself, not everyone got to see that.

I watched women and men throw themselves at Clancy to which he did not turn away. Seemed like they merely made plans to hook up later. Almost all of them. Gross. Made me wonder how much biting and fucking did go on here.

Which made me think of Eric. If people were throwing themselves at Clancy, it had to be a thousand fold for Eric. It made me a little ill. But what right did I have to feel possessive of who he did or did not bite or fuck? Who was I kidding. In the last day, I had come in on a recon mission and ended up swooning at the mere glance of my prey. I did sense my attraction was not one sided, however. But would we have a decent chance of being together? He, a Vampire Sheriff and me, a half-ish fairy? Not that I had much hope for anyone in the romantic department. As I had already encountered with male fairies-that was never happening. I didn't have time for divas. And humans, though I didn't encounter too many prior to now, didn't seem a good match, since they had no clue fairies existed. Weres were too smelly to take seriously, though I had seen some pretty hot ones.I had suspected a few times that my grandfather wanted me to get involved with Kvelin, but that was too creepy. I only viewed him as a brother. Now that I thought of it, he looked strikingly similar to Eric. What were the chances of that? Huh. I filed that thought away.

I mindlessly checked i.d. after i.d. and let my mind wander to more thoughts of Eric; found a few more fakes. Wow, did they really get this many underage kids with fake i.d.'s per night? Judging from their thoughts, they got in here with them a lot, so I would have to tell Eric they had to get a little more thorough with that. I think Grey used a black light at Claude's place.

I was shocked to see Pam approach me, cheeks a little flushed, but otherwise not a hair out of place. "Hey human," she winked at me "how is _this_ working out for you?" She pulled me away from the line, which made a few silly impatient people, groan. She silenced them all with a look.

"Not too shabby. Found a few fakers for you. You guys need to get a system for weeding them out."

"How did you-?" She stared at me and I tapped my head. "Oh." She gave me an appreciative look.

"I think a black light might help with some of them, though. I've seen it used before." She turned to Clancy, instructed him to go find one and took his place, so we could man the door together. "So, are you okay, now?"

"No. Until this is fixed, I will not be okay."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply it had all gone away, I meant more, do you feel a little better getting off some steam?"

"I do. That and a good meal and a fuck" slow wink while her tongue ran across her lips "made me feel more myself for the time being." I rolled my eyes at her and allowed myself to blush, just to cheer her up, which it did. "My anger was mostly for Eric. I know how frustrated and helpless he feels. He is not a man to sit back and wait for things to happen, so not being able to address this head on must be killing him. I am distraught for Alderik , but he is strong. I know he will prevail till we can get to him. And I am also upset that a fairy bested us. And now, hearing that The Council is involved and sent you, that means this is so much more than just a single vendetta against Breandan we have to settle. Obviously there are multiple factions involved and we have to be careful how we approach this. Which annoys the shit out of me."

"You want to burst in, guns blazing, huh?"

"Yes! Finally, a woman who gets me! So, when do we get to have jousting time?"

I laughed. She and Eric were both so damned pragmatic! "Bring it on bitch."

She laughed out loud at that and all the fangbanger "regulars" in line, gasped at the sight. Like they spotted an albino elephant or something. "Eric taught me everything I know, so you're in deep shit, mouthy. Who trained you, your _godmother?_" Thankfully omitting the fairy part.

"Nope. I was trained by Britlingen."

Her mouth fell open with a look of awe. "Okay, I'll give you that. That's pretty impressive. Just sword training or everything?"

"Everything I was able to learn, given my...bodily constraints." Speaking in code in front of the humans was getting annoying. They didn't know what Britlingens were or about The Council, so that was pretty safe. "So swords and other metal weaponry-like daggers, axes, mace, a lot of archery, floor work like hand to hand stuff..." I trailed off when she started to look a little turned on. "Really, Pam?"

She was about to respond when her head turned quickly. Two vampire approached, walking to the front of the line and they were given immediate pass. But not before they both gave me a raunchy look. Pam squelched that quickly, saying "Eyes and fangs off. She's Eric's."

Now my mouth fell open. I waited until they passed and got into the noisy din of the club. "Pam? What the fuck? Since when am I his?"

"Since A-he started to show interest in you and B-we learned who you really are. The last thing we need is another vampire, like Compton, though probably not as fucktarded, sniffing around you, inevitably causing trouble. And eventually tasting your tears or blood or any other bodily delight that will give your identity away. One thing I've noticed in the brief time we've known you is you are quite the trouble magnet, Sookie. So, it saves us all some work by just saying you're his."

"Oh." Again, they were very pragmatic, quick and forward-thinking. I was glad to be on their good side.

"Eventhough, we all know, eventually you will be his, in all ways that matter." Eyebrow waggle.

"Hey! Cocky aren't we? Who's to say I like him like that?"

"Oh come now, you can't be that naïve. As if it weren't obvious in your demeanor when you two are near each other, or the way you look at him, or the way you smell when he turns his attentions on you-"

"Uhm, hold the phone. What the what?" Okay, he had said as much yesterday, but she could smell me, too?

"Yes, you know what I'm getting at. And, when he's around, it's almost non-stop. How he's been able to keep it together when your like that is beyond me. I would have had you ten ways from Sunday by now."

I was beet red. "You're a monster."

"You like it."

"Foof-back to work."

"Yes, boss. But I am supposed to tell you the Master would like to see you."

"Oh? So, when were you going to tell me that?"

"I just did." She looked confused.

"Yeah, but you obviously knew he wanted to see me when you walked over here and-know what? Nevermind. Okay. See you later." She waved at me, and of course, smirked. Clancy was headed over. He must have found a black light somewhere or bought one.

I weaved my way through the crowd. We were a few dozen short of capacity. I glanced over to see where Longshadow was-he was at his usual spot behind the bar. I turned to look for Eric-he was on his throne, watching me. I turned to walk to him and when I was at the front of the throne, I curtsied and bowed my head. "Master. You have summoned me?"

"Sookie, the only time I want you to call me Master is in the bedroom."

"Hey! What happened to professionalism in the workplace?!"

"That was your rule. Recall I did not agree to it. I said I would do my best. This is my best. Though I consider this my worst, personally."

"Hmf, then we disagree on what worst and best mean?"

He grabbed me and sat me on his lap, wrapping one arm tightly around my waist, the other reached up to cup the back of my neck and lean me into his lips. "Lover, there aren't enough hours left this night" he paused and ran his lips around the shell of my ear and licked my lobe. I shivered, my breath hitched and I felt my lady parts jump. "For me to show you all the ways those two _meanings_ can intertwine." His fangs snicked down. I tried to protest, but barely more than a hoarse squeak came out. When I tried to wiggle slightly to get away from those delicious lips, he groaned, "That's only making it worse Sookie, but keep it up." I felt "it" pressing on my backside, which made me groan.

"Eric...not here." I tried to unwrap his hand from my waist. "Sookie, stop." Before I could, he wove the hand that was on my neck into my hair and leaned my ear back toward his mouth. "I can see Longshadow perfectly from here and he looks a little nervous. So be still." I froze. "Pretend I'm doing unimaginable, pleasurable things to you with my mouth," he ran his lips in a small pattern along my pulse point.

"Pretend? I'll try, but this is pretty awful." I managed to get out, though I barely recognized my own husky voice. I felt the warmth spread from between my thighs outward.

He gave a light chuckle and whispered, "He looks around when he gets large bills, then puts his hand behind the register. But I can't tell from here if it's actually going into the drawer or if he has a spot where he keeps it separate." He slid his hand up, from my ankle all the way to my thigh and stopped, as did my breathing. The hand then jumped to my hip and began kneading it. I gripped his arms, wanting to climb inside of him. "Tell me Sookie, is this still awful?"

Before I could mouth off, he lightly bit at my neck"Ahh-mmm" I couldn't stop the sound from escaping my throat and I ground my center down onto his hard length. "Fuck! Sookie, you are going to be the death of me." I had never felt this way in my life. I had heard about it, read about it, yearned for it, but had no clue it was like this. Never. Like. This. I was on fire. I wanted all of him right then and there. I had always wondered, when the time came, if I would instinctively know what I was supposed to do. That was an affirmative. My body needed no instruction. The only thing keeping me from spinning around, lifting up my skirt and straddling him on his throne was the fact there were a few hundred people behind us, watching us. I could hear their thoughts, complete with death threats.

Then I heard a stray thought that seemed out of place. "Eric!"

"Hmmm?" He was drawing circles along my jugular with his tongue and grinding into me.

"God, Eric, stop. Not that I want to, either, but listen." I took his hand from my hip, and used it to shield my mouth, in case anyone was trying to lip read. I looked at him and he was staring into me so intensely, I had a hard time remembering what I was going to tell him. His eyes were such a dark sapphire blue right now. What little of the iris you could see, that is, since his pupils were dilated and he was staring at me like he was going to pounce in about three seconds. "Eric- Longshadow!" I hissed.

That snapped him out of it. "What is it?" I rubbed my lips over his palm so it didn't look like so obvious that I was blocking my mouth. He groaned and closed his eyes.

"Hey, stay with me." They popped open. "Is there a human behind the bar right now?"

"Yes." He ran his thumb along my lower lip and I licked it. His nostril flared and his eyes rolled back for a split second.

"Is it someone Longshadow has been with?"

"I'm sure. Everyone's been with Ginger." I bit his wrist and he grunted in pleasure, though that wasn't my intent. "Though how attached he is to her, I can't say."

"Okay, is she kind of dumb?"

"Very."

"Do you know if she's had some recent brain trauma?" I was running my lips back and forth across the center of his palm.

I felt his cock twitch and he growled. Through his clenched jaw, "I'm not sure. I haven't seen any physical signs of trauma. Why do you ask?"

If I didn't want him so badly, this would almost be fun. "She has whole chunks of thoughts missing. She's avoiding things she doesn't know why she's avoiding."

He slid his hand up my thigh again, this time slipping it under my dress. Shit. He traced light circles at the very top part of my thighs, almost right "there" but purposefully avoiding it.

"What or how do you mean?"

"She was cleaning up behind the bar, she was thinking about the steps. Then she went to clean by the cash till Longshadow uses, but she was...repelled away from it. She went from; 'gonna restock those cocktail napkins and wipe the counter down', to; 'can't do that, shouldn't go there' but a void kind of took over, even as she wondered why she felt or thought that, then she forgot and went on to something else."

I shuddered as his hand kneaded my thigh under my dress. I felt one finger sneak over to just barely brush up against the warmth and by now, wetness, of my panties. As soon as he felt it, he gripped my thigh hard. I got lost in his eyes again, as he pulled the naughty hand out. "Sookie." He gripped my hands between his. "If we don't stop now, I am going to do something that, while we will enjoy it, I would rather not share with the entire bar." He stood us up. "Besides, I want to take all night with you, my little fairy halfling." He eye fucked me in a way that would haunt me for many fantasies to come. "I will devour you." He knew the effect his words would have or else his reflexes were just that good, because my knees buckled and he caught me. "Please don't take this the wrong way, lover, but you had better visit the ladies room and cool down." I looked at him in anger and alarm, but he pulled me in close again to whisper. "No. Do not get angry. I only mean that your smell, your delicious scent of arousal is like no other I have ever experienced, and is driving me wild. I want to kick everyone out of here and fuck you on every one of these tables, on every surface of this building. Twice. It makes me feel like I have never had sex before and you will be my first. It is what I imagine heaven, if there is one, would smell like. That is what your scent does to me. And with you flitting around here, every vampire here is going to smell it, if they haven't already and want to do bad things to you. Since I hadn't prepared on killing twenty vampires tonight, it might be easier if you freshen up. As it is, I will escort you to the facilities in Pam's office. In fact, it pains me, to think of you making it go away, as I would love nothing more than to be enveloped in that aroma for eternity."

Wow. Guess I couldn't get mad at that. I was a little speechless and maybe a little self conscious as we walked through the crowd, him with his raging hard on and me with my heavenly scented panties.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Okay, if this blows, guys I apologize. My eyes are bleeding and I'm asleep at the keyboard. But, I promised to have this out last night, but it's just a never-ending chapter. I'll do better on the next one. It was just so long but I had to get the longest night ever, over with. Love you all, I own nothing, yada, no beta. Toodles.**

Ch. 12

He held my hand, leading me through the crowd. I saw the vampires from moments ago at the door staring at me. Just as he said, they looked at me from across the room very hungrily, their fangs snapping down. I held his hand a little tighter. He lead me down the hallway and stopped outside the door to Pam's office. He turned to me," Sookie, if I go in here with you, we won't come out for many hours. And, I really need to go check out what we just learned."

"Okay" I said a little more breathlessly than intended. "I'll be fine." He gave me a hard to read look and kissed my forehead. When I opened my eyes, he was already down the hall. I sighed and watched his butt till he went into the crowd and all I could see was his head. That was an ass. I wanted to bite it. I went into the office and found the small bathroom. On a hunch, I locked it and turned to splash water on my face. Jesus, what the hell had come over me. I flushed in embarrassment as I patted my cheeks with paper towels. I cannot believe I acted that way-like a sex depraved maniac in front of all those people. I wasn't embarrassed I acted wild in response to Eric, only that I had done it with an audience! I had better have a heart to heart with myself, however, before we went any further. While I was no longer on a secret mission, there were a lot of parties at stake here and I needed to make sure if our-whatever it was-evolved into something, it wouldn't distract us from the bigger picture. If I got distracted for a hot time with Eric and someone I loved got hurt, I would never forgive myself. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I needed to cool my jets and also talk it over with Eric. He seemed very practical. Not that I wanted to approach it like a business contract, but we didn't need to be selfish during a crucial time like this either.

I was doing my business on the toilet, when I heard the doorknob rattle. I smirked-I knew it! "Sookie, what are you doing? Why is the door locked?"

"Pam! Cripes, I'm peeing. Can I have a second?"

"Gross. You can have more than a second. But why does the locked door help with this?"

"It doesn't help anything, other than to keep your nosy ass out, while I do something private, thank you!"

Ignoring that, "I heard you and my Master had a dry humping session on the throne. How was that? Told you you'd be his soon enough."

I flushed the toilet and whipped open the door. "Foof! Did he tell you about what he saw and what I heard?"

"Briefly, yes." She sniffed the air and floated closer to me, pupils huge. "Okay, seriously, if you're going to stay around here tonight, you have got to change your underthings. If you don't, you're going to start a frenzy and I might do something to you that you and Eric won't like much. So, come on." She gestured impatiently with her hands.

"Whaaat?" I was mortified. Again.

"Oh, stop being a child. Here"-she opened her closet and pulled out a pair of teeny, tiny panties. "Go change, please. There is no discussion time. We need to go out and handle our problem and I need you."

I huffed and stomped back to the bathroom. I wasn't sure why I was mad, other than being embarrassed that my underwear was Vampire Febreeze. And being ordered to change into a piece of dental floss. Again in the bathroom, I slid the old Sookie Air Wick ones off and slid the new dental floss one on. I found some brand new washcloths so wiped up a bit to see if it would help. I balled the old ones in my fist and came out.

Pam was waiting impatiently, shocker. "Do I want to know why you keep new panties and washcloths just lying around?"

She fanged at me, "Do you?"

"Yeaaahhh...So, does Eric have clothes here, like you do?"

"He has some in his office, yes. Why?" I wafted the balled up panties at her and wiggled my eyebrows.

"Oooohhh, yes! But I have a better idea for them." We dashed over to his office and did our deed. It felt weird treating my underthings like one of those pine tree air fresheners. But a prank is a prank.

Before we left she said, "You go first. Go to the bar and get a drink from Longshadow. I'm going to send him on an errand and see if I can find his stash."

I sidled up to the bar and ordered a soda. He winked at me and flashed some fang. "How do you find your first night on the job ?" Was this fool actually flirting with me? What a dumb ass! Not only was he stealing from other vamps, but he was flirting with the boss' hookup.

"Very entertaining thus far, thanks." He leaned toward me, in an intimate conversation kind of way, but Pam came up behind him.

"I need a few more cases of red wine brought up, please, Longshadow." Without taking his eyes off me, "Get a human to do it." I leaned back in preparation for what surely was going to be a blood bath. She hissed at him. "I am not sure what part of that sounded like an option. If you know what's good for you, you will stop flirting with the master's human and Go. Get. The. Wine." He sighed and pushed off the bar, giving her a sideways look as he passed.

Pam looked as though she might spit nails, but as soon as he was out of sight, she started looking all around the register. There weren't many places to hide things there, so it was quick work. She found nothing. "Sookie, go into my office and have a seat. I am going to send Ginger to you in a few minutes. See if that black hole knows anything." I did as I was told.

As I passed by Eric's office, he was in there barking out orders into the telephone. He gave me a head nod and curled his finger for me to come in. I did, then he pointed to his lap, to which I shook my head and took a seat on the other side of his desk. He did his best to look heart broken, then pulled something out of his pocket-my undies!-and put them to his nose and took a deep sniff. Eww. Guess he found where we stashed them.

Pam had rubbed them on everything in his office then threw them up into the air vent above his desk so he would smell it all over, but not be able to find them, or so we thought. He finished his conversation rather quickly, I wondered if that was on purpose. "Do you like my new handkerchief? I found it in the air duct. Strange how it would have gotten there. Know anything about that, my little minx?"

"Not a thing."

"Hmm. So what were you up to?"

"Pam and I looked for his stash," I assumed he could figure out who I was speaking of, "but found nothing. So the next step was to talk to-"

At that, there was a light knock on the door, "Miss Suzie? Are you in here?"

"Yes, Ginger, come in."

"Oh, Master. I didn't know you'd be here." She licked her lips and patted her hair. Vomit. "Mistress Pam said to go to her office, but you weren't there. So, I thought I'd check here too."

"Wise assumption, Ginger." She smiled, pleased with her brilliant deduction, picking up on none of the sarcasm. "Please sit. You've been working hard tonight, take a break."

"Whew! Thanks. I could use the rest."

I leaned in closer to ask her a series of mindless questions to get deep into the recesses of her thoughts. "Do you like working here, Ginger?"

"Oh, I do, a lot." She was thinking of all the tips she made and all the vamps she'd been with, and how much she loved being bitten.

"Is the money here pretty good?"

"Yeah, better than any place I've ever worked." Cashing out at the end of the night and adding it all up. Taking it home and stuffing it under a mattress. Fifty and hundred dollar bills being thrown at her in the back seat of a car or in an alley after being bitten. Of a bank envelope and Longshadow's face. Then one of those black, fuzzy gaps of nothing.

"Are there certain nights you make more than others?" "Yeah. Friday, Saturday, Sunday are always real good." Busy tables, loaded drink trays, Longshadow changing out large bills for her, then reaching under the bar.

"Thank you Ginger, this was a nice chat."

"Uhm, you're welcome? Didn't you need to tell me somethin'? Mistress Pam said you did."

"No. I just wanted to try to chat to everyone one on one for a minute, get to know them better."

"Would you like anything Master?" She smiled at him for all she was worth, leaning her neck back and her eyes glazed over.

"No thank you."

A look of disappointment shot across her face. "Okay...well, back to work."

As soon as she was gone, "There's a compartment under the bar on his side! Pam didn't look for that, just something obvious or out of place. It's a secret panel!"

He thought for a moment then told me his plan. He zipped out, but not before pinching my bottom and kissing my cheek. I went to find Pam. She was at the door, winding things down. I quickly filled her in. "Ah, a panel underneath-that's why I didn't find it."

"Yep. Hey can I use your desk to work some numbers out?" She nodded. "How many do you think you let in tonight?" "Humans, approximately 325-350. Vampire, 23." "Okay, thanks." I headed back to the office. I wanted to see how much, roughly, this place took in on a Friday night. I let in about 150 people, Pam said 350. Clancy had to have let some in as well, during gaps when Pam or I weren't there, but I would count that just yet. At $15 pop to get in that's $7,500, just in cover fee money. I won't count vamps, since they didn't pay to get in-they were part of the attraction. Even if those 500 people only bought one $4 soda, that's $2,000 but it was more likely most people spent at the very least $15 on drinks, which is $7,500. So, bare minimum, the club should take in $15k on Friday. Not counting the cover charge or drinks of anyone Clancy let in, or for people who spent more than the $15 calculated on drinks. That vastly differed from the numbers I had peeked at before we opened tonight. He will have a hard time explaining that.

I straightened a few things up in the office and went back out into the bar. They were kicking out a few stragglers. I passed Longshadow in the hall, headed to Eric's office. She was behind the bar, as was the plan, feeling underneath the wood of the bar. Her eyes gave her away when she found the panel.

Ginger was coming up behind her with a rack of glasses to put away. My turn. "Hey, Ginger, those look heavy" arm touch, mentally suggesting she go away "let me grab those and you work on melting down the ice." She looked bewildered but agreeable, "Uhh-okay, sure." I took the rack and set it down.

"Get it?"

"Oh yes." She looked pissed now that she had the physical evidence in her hands. And dangerous. Just then her head turned sharply, "Eric is summoning me. Come."

"Are you sure I should..." but never finished since she was dragging me with her I figured the answer was yes. She flung open the door to his office and Longshadow looked a little thrown off, then resumed his normal stony face. I thought they might ease the conversation slowly into money, but Pam had other ideas.

She marched up to him and shoved the money in his face. "What in the holy fuck is the meaning of this?!"

He looked calmly at the wad of money, then at her, then shrugged. "I don't know. Why are you holding that money in front of me as if I know it's origins?"

"Don't play cute with me. This is from your little hidden panel under the bar."

Still completely unfazed, "I have no clue what panel you speak of. If there is one, it is not from me."

Eric spoke up, "That's interesting, since I watched you stash large bills into it all night." He came around the side of the desk and they were both flanking him now.

I tried to fade into the woodwork, unsure what I was going to see next, but wanting to be out of the splash zone. "But this is merely a small representation of what you've been swindling from us isn't it, Longshadow? 'Lo and behold what we found when we looked over the ledgers." Now he looked worried. "Yes, as our friend Suzie has alerted us, the numbers just don't fit do they?"

I spoke up, "Very roughly adding up numbers from this evening, your total take, accounting for cover charge per head and a low drink minimum, is about $15,000. That's being very conservative. Compare that to last Saturday, which you have said is typically busier by about a quarter to a third, the reported intake was approximately $12,000. That seems way off. And that's just one day of one week. I've gone back by a few months and spot checked a few days per week and found many inconsistent totals."

I found myself looking into a pair of very black, very angry eyes. "You nosy, snooping bitch!"He was suddenly gripping me around my neck, squeezing any air I had. I popped out of his grasp, over to Eric's swords on the wall, grabbed one, but before I could turn to use it on him, he had me from behind, gripping me around my arms so I couldn't move. I head butted him in the nose with the back of my head, popped out again, popped in right behind him, swept his legs out from under him and on the return spin, brought the sword across his neck, removing his head cleanly from his shoulders.

Lucky for me, Eric regularly sharpened them. I took a calming breath and looked down at my the body of my enemy. Where the neck and head were severed was a gooey mess, but the body was starting to ash up. Weird. His hand had apparently grabbed onto my calf and clawed a huge gash into it, right before I killed him, since it was still lightly hanging onto me. I kicked it off and looked over at Eric and Pam. They were poised in attack position but looking at me in shock, awe and lust. Their nostrils flared at the same time and they both moved their gazes from the scene before them to where my leg was torn open. Fuck.

I held the sword up. "Guys...don't start. Get a-fucking-hold of yourselves, or whatever, because I really don't want to-"

I didn't get to finish my sentence because, so fast I could barely hear or see all of it, he said, "Pamela I forbid you to touch, harm or drink Sookie." She hissed and the door slammed behind her and he locked it. All in the space of about two seconds. In one more second, he had me laying on the couch, with him sitting under my feet. He was holding my leg, lapping at the wound and staring very intensely at me. Glad I had shaved. After the first swipe of his tongue, his eyes rolled back into his head, he closed his eyes and groaned. I also felt something very big and very hard against the leg that was still in his lap. All of which I felt right in my core. The way he licked my leg was the way he would lick something else and we both knew it. This went on for a few seconds and when I felt the lady bits start to get very warm, a little self preservation kicked in. That and my leg started to hurt like fuck. The adrenaline must have worn off.

"Uhm, Eric." Why was my voice so husky?

"Hmm?" HIs dreamy response. His hands were slowly inching up my leg and had made it to my thigh.

"Eric. My leg, really, really hurts." He looked up at me, his eyes glazed over.

"I'll give you blood."

"Excuse me? I hardly think that's appropriate right now."

He shook his head in an attempt to clear it. "It will heal you. My blood will heal your injury."

"Oh. That's nice of you. Do you like slather it on or..." I was saying that part through gritted teeth because it was getting hard to talk. The bleeding had stopped thanks to his saliva, but that wasn't doing a damn thing for analgesia.

"The healing would be more complete if you drank it."

"Uhm, yeah...No. I don't feel comfortable doing that." I snapped a little more than I meant to. He looked a little offended. "Please" I hissed "seriously, this is pretty bad." He gave me one more look, then bit the tip of his finger and rubbed the blood into the gash, which burned at first, but then felt immediate relief. My body relaxed as I felt the tension ebb from me. I had been sitting up, so I threaded my hand into his hair, while we watched the tear magically heal. When the bite in his finger healed, he bit it again and repeated the process. In mere seconds, the skin was back together with only a small line of taut, shiny pink skin, where my injury had been. I felt loads better. He bit his finger again, I guess for good measure, but I stopped him.

I took his finger in my mouth and sucked it. I felt bad denying his offer. It was mostly the pain talking. It really had to be an honor for someone of his age and status to offer it to me. Plus he looked so hurt. A few drops couldn't be too bad. I hoped. His blood surprised me. It wasn't metallic, or bitter, like I thought it might be. It was oaky, like really good wine, and a little sweet. My eyes met his and he looked surprised, happy, horny. Okay, now really horny. Mostly horny. The little wound had healed, so I swirled my tongue around his finger a little. I pulled it out, and before I could blink, he had his mouth on mine, kissing, nibbling, begging entrance. I allowed it and our tongues dueled, fighting for dominance-his won. He was an amazing kisser so I just held on for the ride, hoping I could at least kiss back decently. I could count the amount of real kisses I'd had on one hand.

I whimpered into is mouth and pulled him, via his hair, closer into me, which elicited a growl from him. I pulled away for a minute, so I could catch my breath. "Thank you."

He picked his head up from out of my neck that he had been snuffling. "For what?"

"For your blood. It was very nice of you to offer and I didn't mean to be a bitch, but it was really hurting and I was a little scared of taking it. But once I saw how it healed my leg..."

He was looking at me incredulously. "What?"

"It is I, that should be thanking you. And apologizing. You found a thief in my ranks and handed him to me. And killed him for me, I might add. But not before he attacked you and you were hurt. Which I should have anticipated, but didn't. For that I am truly sorry." He absentmindedly rubbed my leg.

"I didn't either. Who knew he was going out all gangbusters?" We looked over at his remains-nothing more than a dark ash stain now. "Which reminds me, if there are repercussions for his death, I will take them."

"You will not. The only one owed an explanation, will be his maker. And when I tell him he attacked the employee who revealed the evidence to me, I will be within my right to have sent him to his final death. He need not know who did the actual deed."

There was a curt knock at the door. "Am I allowed to come in now, or will you issue a maker's command against that, as well?" He rolled his eyes as he got up to open the door. Pam stood in the doorway, miffed, her shoulders squared back. She looked a rosy pink, however, so she couldn't be in too bad of shape. "Please, enter, Pamela." She sniffed the air and made a face. "I smell Sookie's delicious blood, and sex, but mixed with the scent of crispy vampire." She sat down, as far away from me as she could manage without being in the hallway. "Are you okay? I see your leg is healed."

"Yes, thank you. Eric healed it."

"I see." She gave him the hairline high arched eyebrows.

"Yes, Pamela? Something to say?"

"No, Master. But you didn't have to kick me out like that, or command me not to eat her. I was under control."

"I couldn't be sure. I wasn't even sure if I was going to be able to refrain from anything...drastic. But, while I still felt the bloodlust, it was calmed somehow." She looked at him in surprise. "I felt that, too! Normally, I would need to feed and fuck, at least a little, but it was kind of...dulled." They both looked at me in curiosity, as if I were a sample under a petri dish. "Maybe that's some kind of influence I have? I dunno. You guys are my first vampire besties." I shrugged.

They were silent for a second then howled in laughter. "Besties?!"

"I assume that is short for best friends?"

"I think that's the first time we've ever been called besties before!"

They had their good laugh, while I had a big yawn. Wow, that snuck up on me. I was exhausted. "Okay guys, I am beat." I stood up and stretched. "Do you need help cleaning up Sitting Bull, here, or can I go for the night?" That made for another round of laughter.

"This is the second night we've been with you Sookie and it's the second night of non-stop entertainment."

"Yep. I'm better than a carnival. So, same time, same place tomorrow?"

"Pam, excuse us, please."

Huge dramatic sigh, "Fine! I miss all the good stuff, like sexy goodnight kisses and dry humping." The door was closing behind her "Bye, _Suuuzie_, can't wait for whatever crazy fun you bring us tomorrow."

He turned to me and took my hands in his. "When I get home I'm telling with my cousins I told you the truth. How do you want me to tell them about Alberik? Or do you want me to tell them, at all?"

"Would it be possible to have Niall meet with me? So I could tell him directly and he could give me his input. He will have to save my brother to have my full cooperation."

We chatted a few minutes more, discussing our plans in that respect.

"Now, what about us?"

I almost choked. I wasn't expecting that. "What-what about us?"

"What do we do now? We can't keep, as Pam says, 'dry humping' each other here. And something more will definitely be happening. Do we want that to be here?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "What exactly are you proposing?"

"Would you allow me to take you out to dinner?"

"Like a date?"

"Not like."

"Okaaayyy...are we sure that's wise?"

"I'm sure it's very wise. Why are you hesitant? I know you return my desire for you."

"Uhrrmm...awkward."

"Am I wrong?"

"Well, no, it's just-you're my boss."

"Oh come on. That ruse is up, now, remember? You don't have to step foot back in this place now, if you don't want to."

"But, I do want to. I like it. I actually feel useful."

"Okay, then, you stay. And we go out."

"But it still seems inappropriate for work."

"Sookie, if you haven't been able to tell thus far, I do not run my business like a Fortune 500 white collar, politically correct business. Nor do I care one shit about human influenced morals about work relationships." He looked at me expectantly.

"Okay, what about our...situations?" He arched an eyebrow at me in question. "You're a vampire. I'm a halfling fairy. That doesn't seem like we should...you know-be going out on dates."

"Says who?"

"I don't know. My family?"

"They've warned you against dating me?"

"No, smarty. Not you specifically. But it has been drilled into my head most of my life that all vampires want to do is drain and fuck me, so you can see my hesitation at heading out for dinner and a chick flick."

"Have either Pam or I drained or fucked you? Hell, Longshadow or Compton or Clancy for that matter?"

"Not drained me, no."

Again, his eyebrows went up, "Has someone fucked you?"

I flushed, "Well, no, but you've definitely made a good try at it."

I wouldn't look at him, but he grabbed my chin. "Sookie. When you've been fucked by me, you will know it, I assure you." And he slowly leaned in and gave me a painfully tender kiss. He swirled his tongue around mine, teasing and suckling, which I again felt shoot right down to my hootchie. He finished by lightly nibbling my lips and I wished it was my breasts he was nibbling. And from the look in his eyes, he knew it. I shook myself. "So, as I have proven, I can manage to keep my greedy fangs from you when it's appropriate. Sookie, will you honor me tomorrow with a date? We can just talk, get to know each other better, or...whatever." Despite his words' innuendo, the look in his eyes was serious.

"Okay."He smiled one of those that made me feel like the luckiest woman in the world. "But, I'll be working here for a bit. Can I just bring clothes like I did tonight?"

"You can do whatever you would like. I don't care if you wear a dish mop or a prom dress, quite honestly. I would like to tie up some loose ends here, as well, before we head out."

With that settled, he walked me out, making a pit stop to grab my purse and bags from Pam's office. When we got to my car, he took my keys, opened the door and started the car for me. Pushing me up against the side of the car, he laid another toe-curling kiss on me. He pulled my hair back to expose my neck and laid little kisses along my jugular to behind my ear. "Until tomorrow, Sookie. I look forward to our date. Have sweet dreams." He placed me in my seat and shut the door, before I had even opened my eyes from his kiss. I opened them and took a deep breath, trying to gather my wits, before driving. He rapped on the window.

"Are you okay?"

Smart ass. "Yes. I'm fine."

"Okay, the D is for drive and the gas pedal is on the right."

"Grr, watch it, or I'll run your ass over."

"Drive safely, lover." Why did that term send such chills through me?

As I pulled away, I heard my phone chirp a reminder at me. Wow, I hadn't thought to check it at all tonight. It was a text from Claude. Holy shit! I forgot I pranked him earlier. 'Black teeth, srsly Cuz? Paybax a bitch. So r u.'


	13. Chapter 13

Ch. 13

While I would have liked to talk to Claudine tonight, I didn't want to run the risk of running in to Claude. Though I knew I would have to take my lumps eventually, better to get it over with. But I was Just. So. Tired. I perused the parking lot when I pulled in, didn't see his car and breathed a sigh of relief. I got up to the flat as quickly as possible. The light was on at their place, but I needed my strength for the conversation that was sure to follow. So, I did my bedtime rituals and slipped in to bed, and passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow.

When I awoke the next morning, I had that same dream that was melting away the more I awoke. Eric and I were in his office. This time he was more than shirtless and I definitely wasn't wearing sleep clothes, like my last dream. What I could recall was us on the desk, him hovering above me, fangs out, asking me if I was ready. In response, I reached up to pull him to me by his hair, and-that was it. I ached in my girl bits and my neck, as if something had been there, but went away. Must be what blue balls feels like, I chided myself. That was a powerful dream.

I stretched and hopped out of bed, feeling a little stiff in the leg that had been injured last night. I felt a little shiver as the memory washed over me, but I shook it off. I'm not the asshole that tried to kill a bitch. My life or his. I win. I cheered myself at the reminder of my planned date tonight. I was excited, nervous, fearful. The first two I didn't question-that seemed normal. What was I afraid of? Oh, yeah. I was afraid my grandfather would forbid it. I was afraid my family would disown me for consorting with our sworn enemy. I was afraid my family would face consternation from others because of my choices. I was afraid I would face the wrath of The Council for a failed mission, or that they would punish my grandfather for it. I was afraid we would want to go further than just a few dates and then where would we be? I was afraid Eric and I would become distracted by our desire for each other, and lose sight of the severity of the turmoil around us. I wish I had spoken to Eric about this last night, but I had been so tired. Oh well-spilled milk. It was almost 1pm. Better get a move on.

I did my morning work out, ate a small breakfast then headed over to my cousin's. I figured I should stay sweaty, in case Claude was going to seek revenge and it got messy. I snuck in, just trying to keep the upper hand a little longer-Claude was nowhere to be seen.

Claudine was in her huge closet, poofing things from here to there, color-coordinating clothes and shoes. She didn't even turn around when I sat down on her bed. "Hey, Cuz. How was your first night on _The Job_?"

"Ah, interesting, to say the least. Is Claude around?"

"He ran a few errands. Don't worry, he'll be back soon to give you his paybacks."She rolled her eyes at me. She was like the mother of us two petulant children. "Another adventure-filled night with the blood suckers?" She poofed on a lovely blue, skin-tight dress and examined herself in the mirror, then modeled for me. "What do you think?"

It was an aqua-teal blue jersey material with spaghetti straps, that criss crossed in the back. The straps were braided which continued along the neckline and hem and had a braided belt around the waist. Simple, but sexy. "You look gorgeous. But it looks a little short for you. The tightness is good but with the length, it's a little too much. Or, in this case, too little. Sorry."

"Meh, I didn't like it anyway. You take it." She poofed on a purple one next and the blue one was suddenly neatly draped across my lap. "Thanks." I picked at the dress nervously, "Maybe I could wear it tonight on my date."

She spun around and was suddenly going a mile a minute. "A date? With who? Where did you meet? Where are you going? What will you wear? You must try on that dress for sure now!"

"Claudine! Take a breath."

She plopped down on the bed and grabbed my hands, "Tell me everything!"

"Let me start at the beginning of the night and make my way up to that, okay?" I filled her in on the entire night (I left the part out about Longshadow trying to kill me) to the point where I was thirsty after so much talking. Instead of telling her about Eric's brother being held by Breandan, I said only that he was being blackmailed with threat of harm to someone he cared about.

At that, she gasped, "We never even thought of something like that!"

"Probably because we have never really thought of them having feelings or friends or family. We've only ever considered them these monsters-fairy killing machines. Which to a degree they are, but only by nature's design. They can't help how they were made. It's like hating a cat for killing a mouse or a bird-you want to, but is it really his fault?"

She was looking at me with a mix of shock and laughter. "Uhm, Sookie are you running for president of the vampire fan club?"

I blushed, "No. I'm just saying-I've gotten to know Eric and Pam really well the last two nights and I am really shocked. Other than what they choose to...eat" I wrinkled my nose "they are SO much like us. They are funny and prank each other and they're fun and silly..." I trailed off, realizing how much I was incriminating myself and she was giving me that look again.

"I see. Well, I will take your word for it. So, does this conversation happen to be leading to who you're going on a date with tonight?"

I got a knot in my stomach and couldn't look at her to answer her. "Yes."

"Sookie, are you going out with Eric Northman tonight?"

"Yes," I said hesitantly, then blurted, "If you think it's not the world's most horrible idea!"

"Why would I think that?" I started spewing out my words as fast as I could form them, not sure if I was trying to convince her or myself or both. All my fears about why I shouldn't and what would happen if we did and if it went further, since I could really see myself liking him, and was I an embarrassment to my race for liking a vampire and on and on till I ran out of steam.

My tirade was met with silence. When I looked at her she seemed to be struggling for the right words. "Sookie, if you tell anyone I told you this, I will deny it. This MUST stay between us, not even Claude knows." I warily nodded. Damn, now what? "When Grandfather first brought you to our realm, and plead your case before The Council, they tasked you with this assignment, but also the Ancient Pythoness had a bit of a prophecy about you. I will not tell you the exact words it contained, as telling them to you could alter the future. Suffice to say, we always knew you would never permanently stay in Fairy, Sookie. That is a large part of why you were trained so well. We knew you were destined for a more...diverse life. You never bonded with any of the males, or the girls either, for that matter. We knew you wouldn't be happy if you stayed there forever. But, you didn't like staying only on the human side, either. You would light up when you got the occasion to meet other Supes that came to see Grandfather. I always thought you would be a great ambassador of sorts, the way you never seemed to judge any one species or have the air of superiority that most of us have for our own. The only ones we couldn't expose you to were the Vampires, for obvious reasons. Maybe this was your final test. And you passed."

I quietly absorbed that. Is that what this whole "mission" was about all along? If it was, for fucks sake, why can't they just come out and tell me this in the first shitting place. Arrrggghhhhh! But that question had been asked a million times and never answered.

She continued. "So, if you're asking for my blessing, then you have it. Even if what I just said isn't true, you should still be allowed to live, Sookie. And I don't think Grandfather would begrudge you that. Of course, he always wished you would pick a nice fairy male, but that never happened. We understood your mixed heritage might make you hesitant to breed with a full fairy. Even Kvelin had made him hopeful. Cripes, you've lived quite the Spartan lifestyle up until now. You should be able to have some fun. As long as you stay on guard and don't let your emotion or hormones sway you against us or cloud your judgment." She hugged me tight and we sat there for a few moments in an embrace. I few tears slid down my cheeks, though I wasn't sure why, other than I felt a huge weight off my shoulders to know that they wouldn't all blackball me.

Enter Cousin Claude, with his usual awesome timing. "Hey look who's here. Her Royal Brattiness, Princess Pranks-a-lot."

"Not now please brother, we're having a moment."

"Hmf, fine!" He gave me the double "I'm watching you" V-fingers, pointing them at his eyes, then mine, and he was gone.

"So, Eric has asked to speak with Grandfather, to tell him about Breandan in person. And I would like to visit. How do we go about that?"

She looked away for a second and I got a flash or two of something from her, but couldn't quite grasp onto it. "Things are heating up at the palace right now. Breandan has attempted a few, foolish moves to get to Grandfather. It will be hard to say when he can get away. But, if he has news that can help us, he will find a way. But we definitely don't want you going back there right now. Promise me that!"

"Claudine, what the hell? If there's trouble, we must go back! I don't want he and Celighn and the others alone." I stood up, agitated, and paced.

"Sookie, come on. You know they are well prepared to defend Grandfather. His orders were for you to stay here, at all costs. If I have to go back, he will call for me, but Claude will stay here to guard you-"

"Whaaat?! Are you nuts? Let me go! I was trained for this, you're royalty."

She looked offended. "Do not think we weren't _all_ trained for times of war, Cousin. Claude and I have, unfortunately, been through a few. You have not." I immediately felt bad. I know they had lost a lot in the last Fae war, including their parents.

"I'm sorry, Claudine. I'm an ass. I just meant...well, you're full fairy. You can have full fairy children-Brigants to fulfill the throne. I can't. I can fight and I want to. It's you and Claude that should be guarded. They will want Royal blood, not mine."

She grabbed my shoulders. "You are a Brigant, too! Regardless of the dilution. And you have been tasked by The Council. Unless they say otherwise, you will stay here, with your vampire." My vampire? When the hell did he become mine? Before I could ask that question, "I will let him know Northman needs to speak to him and it is urgent. He will tell me and I will tell you. Since it is about Breandan, he will probably attempt to get here as soon as he can get away."

I sulked."Okay, and send my love."

"Will do. Now, this outfit yes or no?"

Sigh...fairies. Talking about our family at war in one breath; about clothes, in the next.

I finished up in her room, then carefully poked my head in the kitchen, where I heard Claude fiddling around. "Hi, Claude. How are you?" I poured on my sweet, I'm trying to get out of deep shit tone.

"Oh, _there's_ my sweet little Cousin who turned my teeth back yesterday!" He threw an apple at my head, but I caught it.

"Aww, I'm sorry." I tried not to giggle and failed. "Was it that bad?"

"Uhm, gee, I don't know, Sookie. I had black teeth for two hours! I didn't want to speak or smile that whole time." There were probably a lot of people who wanted me to thank for that. "It finally went away before show time, but I was really worried. You shouldn't mess with this." He gestured around his face. "Off limits!"

"Oh, honey, I'm sorry. I guess I didn't think my little prank would be that powerful." Vomit, I was pouring on my half-fairy me didn't know my own strength routine. "Amelia could have always done some kind of spell-"

"I will NOT rely on a human-witch or no witch-to help ME with magic."

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking about the awesome, handsome fury of your face when I did it. And how it might affect your job. That wasn't fair. My humblest apologies."

While he puffed up at my fake compliment, I knew I wasn't off the hook yet. "Hmpf-that's better." I smooched his cheek loudly before he could stop me. He always pretended he hated affection, or at least PDA from family, but I knew he secretly loved it. "Just so you know, this isn't over. I'm going to make you suffer, wondering when and what's coming for a while" He said on my way out of the kitchen.

"I would expect nothing less from you, Claude."

"Ha!" I heard him mumble "bitch" under his breath.

I was almost to the door, yelled out "Claudine, let me know as soon as you hear from Grandfather-"

"Wait! Don't forget the dress. Here take the shoes and this jewelry that goes with it."

"Oh yeah. Thanks, Cuz." I hugged her. "You're the best. Let me know if you hear anything though, okay? I mean it. I hate the mystery BS. If there's trouble I want to know. I feel bad enough sniffling over a silly date, when there's trouble at home."

"I promise. Now, go. Don't worry and have fun tonight. If I hear screams coming from your place-"

I flushed and held up my hands. "Stop." Musical laughter. Ugh, why did everyone know how to make me blush? I hated it.

I dashed to my place and tried the new outfit on. It fit like a glove, including the shoes, shocker. Strange, considering I was probably an approximate size 8 (on a good day) or 10 and 5'5" and my cousin was probably a size 4 and 5'11" at least. So, yeah, weird she would have just happened to have a dress and shoes in my size. For a date I just agreed to, about 10 hours ago. And I was the telepath. I packed it all up, hopped in the shower, dressed in my usual jeans, this time with my dagger strapped to my ankle. Hey, the truth was out now, and we had seen, twice now, my need for additional protection. I would let my vamps-I laughed at my own expression- know I had it on me. I patted it and and headed to "work".

I had been at work for a few hours and was not paying attention to time at all. I was downstairs, doing an inventory on the alcohol. I wondered if this had ever been done before, other than when they first opened this place. While I trusted that both Eric and Pam were fairly business savvy, I wondered if it wasn't more that they had a sense for businesses that were lucrative, rather than running said businesses with an iron fist. I think they just made money hand over fist here and didn't have to worry so much about the small details. Or trusted the wrong people to handle it. I saw Longshadow's name on a few of the order forms. He was probably in charge of inventory as well.

I was deep in thought about that, when in my ear, "Well, well , well. Looks like I found myself a delicious fairy-"

"FUCK, Pam!" I yelped and peeled myself off the rafters.

She grinned at me, pleased she scared me, "Don't you know you shouldn't be all alone in a vampire's basement?"

I was smoothing myself, picking the clipboard and pencil off the ground. "Fucking hell! Can you shuffle your feet or something? I'm going to have to get you a bell, if we're going to work together!" I heard a choked guffaw from the stairs and saw Eric's deliciously denim clad long legs coming down the stairs.

"Now that's a thought. Pam with a bell around her neck to warn the little birdy she's sneaking up on her."

From the poo-face she was making, she didn't find that funny, but then she got a glint in her eye. "Hey, this pussy would definitely eat-"

I held up my hands and interrupted. "Uh-uh. Spare me the contrived innuendos, please." I shook my head and twirled my pencil. "It's a wonder you guys get any work done around here. Bunch of over-sexed pervs."

"Spoken like an under-sexed fairy. Speaking of which, we need to have a little girl time. I hear you and my master are going on...a date." She practically choked the word out.

Eric had been looking around at the cases of alcohol. "Why do we have so much of this rum? We sell it, but 20 cases?! We don't need to have all that on hand at one time." He looked at Pam, who shrugged.

"Exactly why I'm down here. Looks like my old buddy Longshadow did a lot of the ordering. He obviously had no clue and just threw numbers on some paper. Look over there-ten more cases of vodka, on top of the twenty here."

He looked annoyed. "I thought he could handle this menial task. He helped his maker run a bar-restaurant business in New Mexico, so I assumed he knew what the hell he was doing."

"Well, water under the bridge. So, I was thinking you should run a drink special. Have a signature drink to use this stuff up fairly quickly. Call it something cheesy, like the Fangbanger or Bloody Fang or VILF or something."

We talked about the recipe particulars for a minute. "Pamela, get the bartenders working on a few recipes to try out on the humans."

She was off, but not before a meaningful smirk at me. "Don't forget girl talk."

Once she was gone, he was suddenly in front of me, hands around my waist. "Good evening, Sookie." He pulled me in and layed a gentle, unassuming kiss on me. He may have meant it as a sweet greeting or as a tease to make me want more. Because I felt the latter. I lay my head on his chest. "Hi." I found my nose sticking in his neck of it's own accord, taking in his scent. It was faint, but earthy and very distinctly him.

I must have made a noise in appreciation because I felt our friend pushing up against my stomach. "Mmm...Sookie. I could stay like this all night." I nodded. His hands wandered all over my back, pulling me into him. He backed me up to set me down on a case of booze and I laughed into his neck, my legs wrapping around his waist.

He growled and his fangs snapped down, which I felt right in all the right places. Who was I right now? I never acted like this before, not that there was ever an opportunity, but I found myself turning into some wanton sex kitten when I was around him. He pulled my head back and looked at me for a few seconds, before gently nibbling my lips. When I parted mine in invitation, he of course, obliged and we proceeded to act out with our tongues what we wished we were doing with our bodies. My core was feeling very hot and very wet and once he caught on to that, he broke our kiss. He started laying a trail of small kisses up and down my neck, down to my collarbone, whispering sweet nothings about my scent against my skin.

He was making tiny thrusting motions, pushing his hard length into me, which conveniently happened to rub against my nub. I gasped. "Eric!" My heart went to my throat at the feeling.

"Mmm...yes, my Sookie?" Some tiny bit of common sense existed apparently, as I fought to clear my head of the sex fog.

"Eric. Uhm, we need to talk" I panted. He never let up his kisses at my throat or his thrusting and I made a mewling noise when he rubbed just right again.

"If you keep making those noises Sookie, there won't be talking for a few hours." He slipped his hands under my bottom and thrust again.

"Ah." Jesus, a few more of those and I was going to be done. "Please, Eric."

"And you saying my name like that isn't helping."

"Well, neither is rubbing up against my...girl bits...until I, you know." At that he did stop.

He looked me right in the eye, "Really?" Thrust.

"Nngh-Eric!" My eyes rolled back and I shivered. When I opened my eyes to look at him, he his eyes were dark, full of passion. And determination. Uh-oh.

"So, if I-" thrust "keep this up" thrust "you are saying you'll come?" thrust. I was very, very close.

But, I grabbed his hair. "Eric. Stop."

He looked disappointed. And confused. "Why, Sookie? While, I admit, I would like us to have our first orgasm together, naked, entangled in my silk sheets, if I can so easily bring you pleasure before hand and you're so close right now, why not? I would like to give you such a simple pleasure." I got another shiver at that. "Wouldn't you like it?"

"I-yes, Eric. I would definitely enjoy it. I _am_ enjoying it." He took that as his cue to return his lips to my neck, but I stopped him. "But I kind of wanted to talk to you before things got too hot and heavy, though it's a little late for that." He finally sensed my seriousness (or else humored me) and stopped.

"Okay, I'm all ears. Let's talk."

Okay, gird your loins and suck it up, Sook. "You know I grew up in Fairy since I was young. Well, the Fae become...active fairly early, at least in terms of courting and other flirting behavior. I spent a lot of time with my nose in books, or behind a broadsword and thought chasing males was a bit of a waste of time. Add to that, the fact that male fairies are about the most self-centered and absorbed creatures in all the realms and yeah, I wasn't so much interested. I was exposed to other creatures that peaked my interest, but the timing wasn't right and my interest wasn't peaked enough, I guess. It's always been my thoughts that I already had enough on my plate and I did not want to bring another mix or halfling into this world, especially with the politics that are going on right now. Which, remind me to update you on that, later."

Okay, stop skirting around the issue. He was looking at me like he shared that exact thought. "What I'm getting at is, I've never been with anyone, sexually..." I blushed like an angry tomato. "And, though I dislike the term, we have to call a spade a spade; I am a virgin."


	14. Chapter 14

Ch.14

I guess I hadn't thought about what I expected his reaction to be, just that I had dreaded telling him. Not that I was ashamed of it, but it was a bit of a hindrance. And I hated the term "virgin"-it was archaic and demeaning to me, for some reason, as if it were a label.

But his reaction surprised me: complete and utter joy. If I weren't so shocked, I would probably laugh at the site of a vampire in a full on beaming-ass grin, fangs down-he looked pretty ridiculous. He hugged me very tightly to him and laughed, pulled back to look at me again.

"What?! What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Nothing is wrong at all, this is wonderful." His grin dialed down to a large, shit-eating smirk. "Sookie, you were made for me."

I pulled away from him, "See, this is what I mean-you hear I'm a virgin and you get all pompous male, chest-beating caveman on me. Suddenly I'm 'made for you'! News flash, fangy! I'm not 'made' for anyone, other than me. My...maidenhood (inward cringe as that word choice didn't help my case at all) is merely a matter of science. And a small piece of skin. (another poor word choice as that seemed to turn him on a little) And" I poked my finger into his chest "If you're getting all hot and bothered over that last part, don't. I've done a lot of horseback riding over the years and that's probably long gone by now." He was still grinning at me. What?!"

"Are you done with your tantrum?"

"Maybe!" I huffed. I was being a little bratty.

"Okay, well while you sit there and stew, maybe you can listen. What I meant was not that I was going to beat my chest and drag you by your hair into my cave. But that you have what I have been looking for, needing for a long time. You see the people that come in here night after night. People who do recreational drugs, fill themselves with alcohol, and toxins, slide on cheap pleather and latex and too much makeup and throw themselves at us, because it's what they think we want. They kiss our feet and call us Master and Mistress and we treat them like the trash they act like. Then there's you. A bratty, pain in the ass, who's smart, beautiful, honest, loyal, can swing a sword like a bad ass and most importantly, can give Pam shit. So, yes, you were made for me, I won't apologize for that. I didn't give it the chauvinistic connotations; you did."

I felt like an ass and was at a loss. That was quite a compliment. A bunch of them actually. "You said, smart before you said beautiful."

"Ha! Smart ass. Surely you know of your beauty." Grandfather had said that too. Guess I didn't see it. "But if you need to hear it again, in proper order-"

"No, thank you. I got it. Sorry I got a little bratty on you. Does it help if I tell you my cousin calls me Her Royal Brattiness?"

"Good to know. Yes, it soothes the sting a little. Do I want to know how you earned that title with him? Though I can probably imagine." He was playing with my hand, rubbing it up and down his cheek.

"He had the nerve to think my grandfather spoiled me."

"Nooo!" He rubbed his lips over the backs of my fingers. "So back to our original topic. I am happy with this news, to say the least. But not because I want you as a notch in my headboard, or to beat my primate chest. But because everything I do with you seems new and exciting. And knowing I will, hopefully, have the honor of being your first, makes me feel like it's my first time too." He pulled me to him again and sniffed my hair. "Gods, Sookie. You are the sun for a soul who hasn't seen it in a millenia." Gulp, what do I say to that?

I heard the door open and heard Pam stomp down the stairs, "Noise, noise, noise! Here I come, loudly making my presence known! Clomp clomp!"

I looked at him quizzically. What the hell was in to her? "I told her from now on if she interrupts us, she is to either knock or make a noise so you can hear her, and recover. Or whatever else you think is necessary, since you flush such a lovely shade of pink when she interrupts us."

"What-ohhh!"I laughed to tears at her ridiculosity.

She stopped halfway down the steps, "Did I do well Master?" She looked at me, then back at him. "Is she laughing or crying? I smell sex. I hope you brought a change of panties." I still couldn't speak, shaking with laughter. "What's wrong with her? Did you break my new toy?"

He shook his head, "You're both brats. What do you want Pam?"

Still eye-balling me like I was an alien, "They whipped up a few drinks to try out tonight. I wanted Sookie to try them."

I slid off the box I had been propped on, much to Eric's dismay. "Sounds fun, let's do it."

He sighed. "I will go finish some things I need to get done before we leave for the evening, while you try the drinks."

That made me realize, "Pam! We'll be leaving you here on a Saturday night, alone!" I turned to look at Eric.

"She will be fine, Sookie. She's a big girl and it won't be the first time she's been here on a busy night."

I turned back to look at Pam, still on the stairs and walked toward her, "We can always postpone-"

She shook her head at me, then started walking up ahead of me. "We did exist before you came along Suzie-Sookie, and we got by just fine."

"Although it was a lot more boring." Eric said from behind me, then grabbed my bottom and squeezed. When I turned to swat at him, he was already too far away, down the hall to the office. "One hour, Sookie. Be ready." He gave me an eye fuck before he closed the door. As we neared the bar, I saw the drinks lined up.

"Uh-Oh, is this a ploy to get me drunk before the date?" Pam rolled her eyes at me.

"Yes, that would endear my Master to me. Get you tanked before your first date." She motioned impatiently to start the taste test.

I took a sip of each one. "Wow, these are all really good. Who made them?"

"Thalia." She appeared in front of me, the exotic vampire from the night before, though I never formally got to meet her.

She smiled shyly. I instantly liked her. "Thanks. You like them?"

"Yes. These three are the best. These two are still really good, just a little strong for me. But I don't drink much."

"Yes, those two have three different types of alcohol in them."

Pam gestured to one of the waitresses putting chairs from the tables. "Belinda." She jogged over. I liked her, too. She was one of the nice ones I had read at the meeting last night.

She smiled at us, "Yes Mistress?"

"Try all of these and tell us what you think." I warned her about the two I had separated being stronger, so she would take a smaller sip of those. She agreed with me-all of them were good, just the last two had a bigger bite (ha) to them. "Maybe we could charge more for those two, and put a little warning on them. Ooh-add some food coloring red or black to make them more ominous. Add one of those light-up ice cubes for effect. Give them a scary name. Like...The Nosferatu and Vlad the Impaler." I laughed at my own joke, but the vamps seemed to like the idea. What was with them and liking the cheesy cliches? Oh well.

"Suzie-Sookie, I think you have missed your calling. You do very well at thinking outside the box on business matters."

"Thank you." We made decisions on them-the other three were called The Fangbanger, The Blood Bag (Pam's idea) and The VILF-and decided prices. I was going to go to the party store tomorrow for accessories to jazz them up, but they would try them out tonight to get feedback. Crap. I looked at the time, I didn't have long to get ready. "Pam, can I use your office?"

"Of course. Do you want me to do your hair again?"

"Uhm...I'm not sure. Let me go put it all on and we can see how I should have it." I dashed into the office, sans Pam's reflection peeking eyes this time and slipped it on. She came in just as I was slipping the last strap over my arm.

"Darn, I missed the show."

"Hush, what do you think?" I was starting to get nervous.

"You look" she let her fangs run down "amazing."

"Really, or are you just being skeevy?"

She looked insulted and narrowed her eyes at me, "I am very serious. You look lovely. And delicious. Eric will be very pleased. That is a beautiful dress, casual material, yet dressy and demure style." She suddenly went into fashion critique mode. "The color and fit are perfect for you." She walked around me and looked me up and down, then stopped and seemed to sniff the air a bit. "Why are you scared? I can smell your fear. Surely you know you are in for a most delightful time." She waggled her eyebrows and leered at me.

"I just-I don't have much experience with dating or anything else and he's, well, him!" She put her hands on my shoulders.

"Suzie-Sookie, he can be a cocky, Viking sex god, yes, but he can also be very gentle and patient, when it's worth it for him. I know he finds you very worth it. Sit. Where's your bag of tricks?" I gestured to the chair.

"Why do you keep calling me by both names?"

"To annoy you. Don't change the subject." She had pulled a large curling iron from thin air, plugged it in and set to work on my hair. "You've never been with a man?" I turned to look at her. How the hell? She gestured for me to turn back. "I'm a woman. And I was a virgin right before he turned me-I see the signs. I can tell how you react when we both make advances, that charming blush. This is good. You are what he needs. He has been...bored for many decades now, uninterested in a way I have never known him to be. When you floated your fairy ass in here the other night, there was the spark I hadn't seen in him in a long time. When you told me who you were and why you were sent, and yet, you were still alive, after having told him first, I knew you were different. I looked at him and saw a tinge of excitement and happiness when he looked at you." I put my hand on top of hers. I thought I might get misty. "I tell you this not to have an Oprah moment but to allay some of your fear. That and I am hoping to soften you up into having a threesome."

I laughed. Ass. "Ah, Pam, just when I thought you were going sappy on me." She held up the mirror for me to check out the new 'do. The hair was down, just some light curls, but she had put a small braid along the top of my head and continued it down the side of my head. Old-fashioned, but simple and pretty and it matched my dress. "Pretty. Thank you."

"Can I do your makeup now?" I sighed. Every time I needed makeup, someone was doing it for me lately. "Pleeeeease..." Oh well, she did a nice job last night.

"Sure, but between you and my cousin, I'm starting to feel like a doll."

"It's fun to put makeup on you. And you don't require much. Tell me, this cousin, is she into women? Or open to a little persuasion?"

"Pam! Eww. I don't want to think about my cousins being 'persuaded' with anyone-male or female."

"Hmm, prude. Well, give her my number. If she looks anything like you and she's a fairy..." Her fangs snicked down.

"Okay, okay, I get the point." She and I chatted a little more. I asked about the repercussions for last night.

"Eric contacted his maker, Hot Rain. He explained the circumstances and there will be no penalty owed." At my inquisitive look. "If a maker's child is killed by another vampire, they will usually have to pay a fine as well as a formal complaint being lodged to the monarch of the offender's state."

"Ah. Oops. I would have felt bad if Eric had to pay for someone I killed."

"Nonsense. The theft from us alone justified his final death."

"You know there was a time when ladies were fragile, petty creatures who talked of nothing but court, clothes and gossip." Eric's low, sexy voice sent a shiver through me.

"Ha!" Both Pam and I said at the same time his intrusion.

"As if you ever had patience for that nonsense. I can think of a few courtesans who got their necks snapped-"

"Pamela!" He warned.

I rolled my eyes, "Yes, Pam, not in front of the fragile flower over here."

"No, my Æthelflæd, rest assured, I do not think you too fragile. Merely that this isn't the type of conversation to get you geared up for the best night of your life."

I snorted. "Though I'll give you points for honoring me-Hey, wait! Did you know her? Were you around then?"

He smiled sweetly at me, "She was a few years before my time, but a legend by then, nonetheless." He could turn me on just by talking about history and the things he'd seen all night long. Pam looked back and forth between us, confused. "Lover, Pam doesn't share our love of history. Should we give her a lesson?"

"You know what- I was going to ask who or what the hell you are talking about, but honestly, I don't care. Maybe you guys can rub each other with books later." She strode out of the room, miffed.

"Oooh-she seems mad."

"She'll get over it." I looked in the mirror to check over my makeup. Great job, Pammy. I could get used to having a hand maiden. I always poo-pooed them when my grandfather wanted me to have one, but now I could see their draw. "You look stunning." I blushed and took him in. How had I just noticed for the first time what he was wearing? Black, well, very well-fitted pants and a grey button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up a bit to show his delicious forearms. I found myself staring at them for some reason, maybe because it was the most bare part of him. They were sculpted and had a layer of medium blonde hair on them, not enough to be beastly hairy, but just enough to be masculine and yummy. He broke me from my reverie, "Hungry?" To eat you?

"Yes." He smirked at me, as if he knew what I was thinking.

"Shall we? I know of a perfect spot."

We took off in his delicious red Corvette, which I spared him the Prince reference. He had quite a lead foot, but who wouldn't in a car like this? Once we arrived at the restaurant, we were immediately seated, so I assumed his badassness preceded him everywhere. I sat down very unladylike, with a big whoosh of air. He smiled at me, "What was that about?"

"That was some ride in your car. Do you always drive like you're qualifying for the Grand Prix?"

"Too fast for you?"

"Not at all."

"Yet another reason I like you." The waitress came and took our drink order. While my nerves were on hold for the moment, I thought I glass of wine couldn't hurt. While she took Eric's order for some different type of blood, I could barely fend off her lustful thoughts. She might straddle him at any moment. Smelly were-something. Back off. Sliding closer to him, "Honey, don't get too full. Save some room for...later." I grabbed his head and nipped at his lips, then looked at her through heavy lidded eyes. "Are you still here?" She disappeared, looking properly put in her place, I thought. I turned back to Eric.

"Wow. Very nice. I like being claimed by you. But don't make promises you don't intend to keep."

I looked him square in the eye. "I won't. And I didn't." I think I saw him gulp.

"That hardly makes me want the blood they serve here. It will be dreck, compared to yours."

I lay a gentle kiss on his neck, "Then think of me as dessert."

His fangs slid down. "I already do. In more ways than one." I looked at them closely. Sharp, white, pointy; they were such a part of him. He always seemed in control of them. Sometimes, like now, they slowly slid down, sometimes they slammed down, others they snicked down lightly, barely audible. And while they should have made me frightened, they didn't. Their attachment to him made them sexy.

"May I?" He nodded. I touched them lightly and he closed his eyes. It looked like he enjoyed the sensation, so I continued. I ran my fingertips along the very tip and he shivered. I pushed one fingertip into his fangs and pierced it, to see how sharp they were. I was giving him a little offering but also I was curious to know what they would feel like in my neck. They were so sharp, it was barely a pinch. His eyes popped open wide at the feeling of my skin and taste of my blood. and immediately closed around my finger. His hand locked around my wrist, not that I was pulling away. It was my turn to close my eyes. I felt the sucking sensation all the way to my hootchie.

"Open your eyes, Sookie." I did. Oh. His eyes were burning into me. They were half open, he looked drugged, but in a good way. I considered myself thoroughly undressed by them. At least we knew he could handle my blood. Watching him watch me while he sucked on my finger, I wanted to wrap myself around him, on him like a skin. The tiny wound on my finger must have closed because he stopped sucking. Just as I was about to prick my finger on his fang again, to get that delicious feeling back, he released it before I could. He kissed the inside of my wrist then laced his fingers with mine and lay them on the table. "If we keep that up, we won't make it through this dinner. In fact I might make you my dinner on this table." I tried but couldn't find much wrong with that idea right now. "I want you to eat to keep up your strength." Ah. Gotcha. Fuel for fucking.

The waitress, who I now mentally dubbed Skank, slunk over and deposited our drinks. I ordered a chicken Caesar salad, no garlic or anchovies. Strangely, Eric ordered stuffed mushrooms. When I looked at him in shock, he shrugged. "I heard they are very good here." Okay, weirdo. "So, earlier you wanted me to remind you to update me on fairy politics." I filled him in as best I could, not that it was much. "I agree."

"Agree with what?"

"Your grandfather and cousin. You need to stay here."

"But can you see how frustrating it is to want to defend your family but be left in limbo, helpless to help?" The words left my mouth before I thought about them. Insert foot in mouth. His look said it all.

"Yes, I do know that feeling."

"Eric, shit. I'm so sorry. I-"

"I know, Sookie. It's okay." The stuffed mushrooms arrived, so we paused. Once Skank was gone, I watched him to see what he was going to do with them. He ignored them. Hm. "So we wait for your grandfather." He sighed, a worried furrow in his brow. I know waiting was killing him.

"Honestly, I think he will want to talk with you ASAP. He was worried about Breandan consorting with you, and now he knows the only reason for that is because he's blackmailing you. I didn't tell her about Alberik, by the way, just that he was threatening someone you care for. It wasn't my place. But, the sooner he meets with you, the sooner he can put an end to this Water Fae nonsense once and for all. Especially now that there have been more attempts at violence, in my absence. Claudine didn't say it, but I got the definite feeling The Council has given their go ahead."

"How so-'the feeling', I mean?"

"Well, I can read most Supes to varying degrees, with the exception of Vampires. With fairies, it's more like vague, stray thoughts."

"Imagine that." He snarked.

"So, sometimes I can sense or get an overall feeling if they are thinking something, especially when they are trying not to tell me."

"Interesting. Do they know that?" I shook my head. He pulled the mushrooms closer and examined them. Taking a fork from my place setting, he cut one in half, poked a portion with the fork and held it to me.

I raised an eyebrow at him, "Is that why you ordered them, so you could feed me? You could have just told me to order them myself."

"Take it easy, Gloria Steinem. Me feeding you was supposed to be sexy."

"Oh."

"Yeah, 'oh'. Now sshh and open." I did and he slowly placed the mushroom in my mouth and ohmigod it was heaven.

"Wow! You weren't joking."

"See?" He smirked at me. I took another sip of my wine and chewed. And thought over this whole situation. I was here, with this gorgeous hunk of a man. Now what? I had been prepared to have this big talk with him about what happened after tonight and what we would be to each other, but decided against it. Here he was, this sex on a stick, Viking sex god, taking ME on a date. When all he had to do was snap to have women, and men fall at his feet. But he chose to take me out, to woo me. He said I made him excited, like old was new again. I think that said it all. Those weren't words he used to get into my pants. I wasn't going to be a fangbanger to him. I had to just close my eyes and enjoy the outcome. Then I got the tinglies in my stomach again, thinking of the outcome. "Looks like you're doing a lot of thinking over something so small as a stuffed mushroom. Are they that good?"

I smiled at him, "Yes."

"Don't laugh at the cliche, but I have to tell you-men have fought wars over smiles like that. I feel privileged that I am the receiver." We smiled at each other, like a couple of mooning kids for a second. "More?" I nodded.

This time there was more of a romantic air. He took the other half and speared it, brought it to my lips where he paused. I opened and gave him a come hither look. He placed it on my tongue and I sealed my lips around the fork, making him tug a little to get it back. He watched my mouth the whole time. I moaned in pleasure as it melted in my mouth, but also to egg him on a little. His pupils dilated and he scooted a little bit closer. I made sure to run my tongue across my lips slowly to pick up an imaginary crumb. I dotted my napkin to my mouth, then lay it back on my lap, "accidentally" brushing my hand against his thigh. I leaned in to get my wine glass and took an exaggerated sip, making sure my lips were nice and shiny afterward. Maybe the red wine on my lips looked a little like blood, and the visual did him in, because he was on me in two seconds. He was sucking at my lips, until I opened them and he slipped his tongue in. His hands were on my hips kneading them and he unlocked our lips to put his on my ear, my weak spot. "You, my little fairy, are a tease."

"You said it was supposed to be sexy." I ran my hands over his shoulders, down his arms to his forearms and squeezed them, pulling them into my hips, that he was already squeezing. He groaned in my ear, which sent shivers through me and pulled away. "Come, you need to eat more." We pretty much repeated the process several more times, until the salad arrived. By then I was getting full. And ready to rip his clothes off. I didn't want to be full and...doing whatever it was we were going to be doing after dinner. Butterflies again. I picked at the food, mostly eating the chicken. The whole time we chatted about everything and nothing. Books, history, Pam, movies, my family. I had never had the ease with anyone that I had with him.

"Are you full?" I nodded."Would you like to take that with us, for later?" He gave me a meaningful look.

Oh. Later. "Sure." Skank disappeared and came back with my leftovers all boxed up. I read her quickly to make sure she didn't spit in it. "Well, if you're ready." He laid a chunk of cash in the black billfold she left, slid out and offered his hand to help me up. He made sure he caressed the small of my back the whole way out. While we waited for his car to be brought around, I was dying to know-"Now what?"

He leaned in close, so his lips would brush my earlobe, "Wouldn't you like to know."


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Ehrmegerd you guys, where to start? I didn't have A/N's on the last two chapters and then I went over a week without posting. What can I say? I'm an ass. Between holiday shenanigans and trying many times to get a chapter out, then deleting it because it sucked...here we are. I wasn't happy with how I was portraying their first time, so kept scrapping it. So, I figured I'd give you what I do have, just to make up for the wait. Oh, and I will get another chappy out by the end of the weekend. For sure. So, hope you all had a very nice holiday. It's all about diet time for me, now. Fatty fat fat can't fit in any of her jeans, so yeah, that's gonna be a thing. Okay, love you all, thanks for the adds and comments, etc., they make me smile (and a little gassy, too, if I'm being honest). Oh, anyone seen the new cover art for the last SVM book? Interesting...Speaking of, I own nothing-CH owns it all. Dammit, I want some Dove dark chocolate/peppermint sooo bad.**

Ch. 15

"Now who's the tease?"

"You like it."

"Maaaybe..." I winked it at him as he helped me into my side of the car.

"Sookie, if you wink at me in public again, I will fuck you where you stand." He leaned in and nipped at my neck.

He slid into the driver's seat and we were off. The whole way there, he held my hand, showing me how to shift gears and when. I had told him at dinner that I didn't know how to drive a stick and he promised to teach me. I'm not sure how much I learned since, in between shifting he was massaging my hand in distracting ways. I watched the civilization get more and more sparse the longer we drove.

"Still no hints, huh?"

"Nope. We're almost there. Here" he opened the sun roof "look out at the stars."

I leaned my seat back, still holding his hand, and enjoyed the view. The air had even cooled a few degrees. I practiced my calming breaths and heard his barely audible sigh. I smiled and looked at him to find he was already looking at me with a smile in his eyes. I had forgotten my ability to influence him. "I forgot. You okay with that?"

"I am more than okay with that. I was already more content than I have been in a long time, but when you do that, it feels like the warmth of the sun embracing me."

"Awww..."

"Hush, we're here."

I felt the car slow, so put my seat up. It was too dark to see much, other than lots and lots of trees. It had the smell of deep woods.

"Bringing me somewhere deep in the forest to kidnap me and make me your prisoner?"

He came around to my side and opened my door. "If only you didn't have the annoying ability to pop away." His eyes got big, "Hey, if I built a lead room..." he

"Like you would need that to keep me here." As soon as I saw his eyebrows shoot up in surprise and delight, I realized I had intended that thought to stay in my head. I blushed, "Erm..."

He pressed against me and I leaned back on the car. "I will keep that in mind. Should we revisit this topic in a few hours, after you've experienced my...hospitality?"

Gulp. He didn't give me a chance to answer. Lightly grabbing my chin, he nibbled little kisses on my lips. I reached my hands up to grab the back of his neck, entwining my fingers in his hair and pulling him in for a real kiss. His arms slid up my sides, then around to my back and my bottom, pulling me into him. And the ginormous bulge between his legs. Yum.

My legs immediately wanted to wrap around his waist, but couldn't because of the dress, so I groaned in frustration. He broke our kiss to look at me. His eyes burned into me and he let his fangs slowly slide down. I would have to revisit later, why that always thrilled me.

"What's the matter, Sookie? Impatient for something?" My response was to lean in and run my tongue under the tip of one fang, to which he groaned. Before I could continue the same treatment on the other one, I found myself in the air. I half laughed, half gasped at him, holding on for dear life. He took me up and over the tree line. The moon was large, a just rising, waxing crescent and reflected onto a large river. The stars were very bright as well, the way they are when there's little bright light below to wash them out. It reminded me of Faery. "Do you like it?"

"It's lovely."

"I ordered it just for you."

"Oh brother, that old line?"

He looked mock offended. Before he could say anything, I squeezed myself into him even more and nuzzled his neck, "It's perfect."

We must have floated down because I felt firm ground under my feet. We were on the deck of a log cabin. Well, it had the appearance of one. "Wow."

The deck went out on to the lake. "Do you like it? I come here sometimes, to get away from the city." We walked to a quaint but very accommodating porch. As he entered an involved security code, I looked around as much as I could. The house looked modern, but was given the appearance of a rustic log cabin. The wall facing the lake was a wall of windows, floor to roof, though I couldn't see inside.

"I can see why. It's a vacation home barely thirty minutes from the city. This is gorgeous."

"I'm glad you like it." The door opened and we stepped in. He lead me by my arm in the darkness, until he flipped a switch on the wall. The interior oozed nothing but luxury and comfort. The floor to ceiling windows I saw, had a solid wood shutter over them. Noticing my stare, he flipped another switch; the shutters unsealed and slid open, revealing the same view we had from the deck. For Louisiana, this was pretty damn nice. Like something you would see in Aspen.

"Are they light tight?"

"Yes. Though I don't often wander around up here before the sun sets. It's just an extra measure of protection. They automatically shut as I set them for sunrise, depending on the season." He lead me around and showed me the entire place and was very descriptive, like a realtor, I laughed to myself. It had a loft bedroom and wide open bottom floor plan. The bedroom was very simple and homey, yet sensually tactile. The bed was made of solid wood-maybe oak, and gave off a lovely smell. It had several layers of blankets on it, the last being a fur pelt. When I sat on the bed to try it out, I felt myself sink into it-it was heaven. It took every bit of restraint I had not to lay down on and allow myself to get lost in it. With him, of course. He must have sensed my emotions, because he gave me a lazy, sexy smile I wanted to kiss right off his face. "Comfortable?"

"Very. Would you mind if I move in?"

"I would like that." We eyeballed each other for a moment longer before he offered me his hand and led me downstairs to the oversized couch in front of the fireplace. It was red brick and dominated the entire house. I loved it. It was just so cozy. There was every amenity, yet all I wanted to do was sit in front of the fireplace and read a book. After the tour, I sat on the couch, while he started a fire. I laughed softly, "Every modern convenience and you opted out of a gas fireplace?"

He gave me a boyish grin,"I like keeping in touch with the old ways. Don't let my spoiled exterior fool you. I'm still a Viking at heart."

"Hence the rug?" I wrinkled my nose at the bear skin rug. I hated the thought of animals killed for sport. At least the pelt upstairs didn't have a face.

"I shot that myself." He said with pride. "It was a century ago. And rest assured, the Inuit family that received the rest of it's carcass put it to good use." That made it a little better, I suppose. "And before central heating and air, we actually used these to keep warm." He spread out on it and made the come hither finger gesture. I laughed. "Come, try it out."

I got on the floor and edged over to him on my knees. I made my eyes big and round, "Tell me more about the old country, Grandpapa" I sassed.

He grabbed my shoulders and pulled me to him, me on top of him, in a very ungrandfatherly way. "It seems to me, young lady, that your 'grandpapa' should have taught you to respect your elders." We were nose to nose and he had one arm like a vice around my waist and the other behind my neck, gently holding me to him. I opted to not say anything in response, for once; rather just to enjoy staring into his ocean blue eyes. Keeping my eyes open to watch him, I leaned in for a kiss. Judging from the look in his eyes (he kept his open, too), he liked that.

I nibbled at his lower lip, then slipped my tongue in to tease his. He allowed me to lead the kiss, as I suckled and swirled my tongue around his, gaining more confidence by the second, judging from the passion in his eyes and the hard bulge pressed against my stomach. I deepened the kiss, grabbing his face, my breathing sped up and my eyes involuntarily closed. I hiked my dress up, so I could bring my legs on either side, to straddle him. The second I felt his bulge against me, separated only by a thin wisp of silk and his pants, I moaned and ground into him. When I did that, I shifted a little and my tongue scraped his fang. Apparently, a little blood was drawn from the small scratch, because he groaned and suddenly flipped me. I was now on my back and he was between my legs. Again involuntarily, my legs wrapped around his waist and I gasped at the feeling of the new position. Mentally, I marveled again at how my body just took over, without me even having to think. I mimicked his position earlier, one arm around his waist and one on the back of his neck, pulling him into me. He was rocking his hips back and forth, pushing his bulge into my sensitive center and suckling my tongue, to get the last droplets of blood before the cut sealed. I wanted to cut it again, for all the pleasure it gave us both, but part of me wanted him to hold out for the blood I wanted to give him tonight. I knew it was dangerous, but I trusted him. Completely. It wasn't smart, and I could think a list of people a mile long who would probably want to slap the stupid right out of me, but I did. When it healed, he pulled back to look down at me. From his spot between my legs. His hair was disheveled sexily, his eyes were burning into me, clouded with lust, his fangs peeking out past his lips, still shiny from our kiss. Oh my. My breath hitched. I wanted him right then and there, more than anything in my entire life. What little bit of occasional nervousness I may have been feeling was now completely gone. I slipped my hands in at his collar to caress the base of his neck, then slowly began to unbutton his shirt.

"How did we end up with so many clothes on?" I looked up at him innocently and he gave me that ten thousand watt smile of his.

"I think it was your idea, wasn't it?"

I watched him, watch me unbutton him. When I got down to the last button, I couldn't look at his eyes any longer. My attention was now completely taken by his semi-naked chest. I must have looked like someone who has found buried treasure. I sat upright, to get closer to it and he sat back on his haunches to accommodate me. I slipped my hands inside his opened shirt, running my palms over his skin, his muscles, his nipples. Not close enough. I pulled my legs out from under him and sat on them to get even closer. I leaned in and took in his scent. It was intoxicating-very natural, woodsy and salty, like the ocean, and very him. Between his scent and the smoothness of his skin, the roughness of his hair in contrast; I had to taste him. I slid the shirt off his shoulders and took him all in. Because it was easiest to reach, I kissed his collarbone first. Then ran my tongue lightly over it and heard him sharply suck in and take an unnecessary breath. I ran my fingers through the chest hair and I heard him make a little noise. When I looked up at him, he was watching me, his eyes intense, a deep blue and his mouth in the most slight of devilish grins.

"What?"

"Just enjoying the agony."

"Oh. Is this okay?" I continued running my fingers through the hair, then down to the more sparse trail down his stomach. His eyes rolled back just a little.

"Yes, Sookie. It is more than okay. It's the sweetest torture I've ever experienced."

Satisfied with that answer, I returned back to my treasure chest. I slid my hands over his broad shoulders, placing a string of kisses along his pectoral muscles. When I sat back from that, I realized I was eye level with his neck. Again, gently nuzzling his collarbone, I nipped a trail up his neck. He crushed me into him and while he did so, unzipped my dress. I wasn't ready to stop yet so continued my assault on his neck and his moans made it very clear he was enjoying it. Made me wonder how much he would enjoy me really biting him. So I bit him right at the juncture of his shoulder and neck.

Before I could take my next breath, I found myself on my stomach, face down into the bear skin rug and a very large, very aroused vampire on top of me. "Sookie, be careful. You play with fire when you bite me." He growled in my ear as he was nibbling the back of my neck. "While I would love nothing more than to feel those sexy little blunt teeth of yours bite into me, I fear what little control I have over myself right now, while you...tease, will be gone completely, if you continue." He had pulled my hair aside to clear a path for his nibbling, and was tugging it, just slightly, but enough to make me feel the heat immediately shoot between my legs. Add to that the fact that his bulge was now pressing against my backside and he was doing that hip rocking thing. I felt it right in the pit of my stomach and my nerve center. I wasn't sure if it was possible, but I felt I might come right then.

Panting, "Eric. Dress. Off."

In a maneuver that rivaled a magicians' tablecloth trick, he had it off me in a heartbeat. I felt his lips laying kisses on my ankles, on the backs of my calves, he paid special attention to the crux of my knees, running his tongue along the backs, which tickled a little. Before I could protest too much, he had already licked a trail up the backs of my thighs and I held my breath. It tickled and felt incredible at the same time. Grabbing my rear, he squeezed and massaged it, eliciting a low groan from me. He skipped over my bottom and started on my lower back with his lips and tongue. I almost came undone when he licked and kissed across the dimples in my back. I mewled, my face in the rug and he groaned.

"Sookie, you are going to be the death of me."

I turned my head, so my cheek lay against the rug, "What did I do? I'm just enjoying."

"Exactly. It's listening to you 'enjoy' that's killing me."

"Okay, I'll try to be more quiet." I huskily joked.

"No!" He flipped me over on my back and put his nose to mine. "Don't ever restrain yourself with me."

I wrapped my legs around his waist again, and my arms I draped behind his neck. "I'm not sure I could if I wanted to. Eric, I feel so...crazy when we're like this. I mean good crazy, but I have no control-my mind turns off and my body just takes over. Is that normal?"

He smiled, "It is. But for the record, I feel the same." He sat back, bringing me with him up from the floor. "Shall we go upstairs?" I blushed "It would be a little more comfortable than the floor. Though if you prefer it, we can stay here."

"No, I would like to try out the bed" I giggled. He started to stand, but I stopped him. "Can I take us?"

"How do you mean?"

"Pop us up there. I've wanted to try with someone who is not a fairy and it's just a small distance. Have you ever been teleported somewhere before?"

"Never." He had a cautious, but excited gleam. "You're sure it's safe? We won't end up joined at the hip, like conjoined twins?"

I laughed and touched his cheek, "No, I'm confident I can pull it off without a hitch, if I can get us up there. The worst that can happen is we won't go, or just I will go and you will be left here." I unwrapped my legs and stood up and he followed suit. "Ready?"

He nodded and I grabbed his hand. I concentrated, allowing my magic to fully build up and course through my body, through my arm, into him, into both of us. He looked at me in astonishment as he felt the power. I closed my eyes and visualized the bedroom. I felt the usual pulling and then the 'pop', though it was harder than usual, as we arrived at our destination-right smack in the center of the bad.

He opened his eyes and looked around in amazement. Then a strange look overtook him and his grip on my hand tightened. A lot.

"Ouch." I looked at him in alarm. His whole body was tensed, his pupils fully dilated.

He grit out, between clenched fangs, "Sookie. I think the teleportation enhanced your fairy smell. I am losing control. I do not want to harm you. You need to run-no! Pop out of here, now!"


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Yesss, my lovelies, as promised, another chapter. Again, not to be a douche, but to lessen your waiting time, this chappy is cut in half. I hate making you guys wait, so I'd rather release smaller chapters. Oh yeah-I meant to add on the last a/n, another reason an update was delayed was because I was messing around with a new tablet, trying to compose stories on it...yeah, FAIL. At least till I get a real bluetoothy keyboard. Eff that was annoying and difficult. I may try writing tonight, using a swype type app to see if that's any easier, but I doubt it. So, if any of you know an app or have ideas on how to make it easier, I'd love a pm. The whole reason I wanted a damn tablet was so I could do my stories anywhere lol. First world problems, I know. I don't mean to complain. I'm thankful, I swear. Anyhoo, I am shooting for getting another chapter (THE chapter-you'll know what I mean when you finish this one) out by Tuesday night. Okays-loves you guys long time, thank you for all your love and comments and faves, you all give me butterflies in my stomach. I own nothing, Miss Harris, if your nasty, owns it all. Oppa Gangnam style. Happy New Year!**

Ch. 16

I had 2 seconds to decide-pop the eff out of there or stay. If I teleported out, there might be even more residual magic/fairy smell, or whatever was at work, here as a result. And then who knows the effect it would have on him. I could only go to places I knew of and I couldn't do super long distance, say from here to my apartment. I couldn't just pop to a random spot outside the house. Well, I could, but if he was in crazed fairy-tracking mode, then he could just track me to anywhere I went. And I would never be able to outrun him-he could fly for fuck's sake! Shitshitshit. I was going to have to try something else. I could possibly try to fend him off to buy some time, but I would have to maintain contact with him to see if I could assert any calming influence on him. I pulled myself from my thoughts and focused on him. He was still with me, but losing ground fast-he was trembling all over and salivating.

"Sookie! Go. Now!"

"Focus! And listen." I hurriedly told him what my plan was and it looked as if some of the words registered but towards the end, he was no longer my sweet, considerate Eric. He was now the Vampire I had been taught to fear all my life. I still didn't fear him as much as I probably should have, because I knew he was still my Eric underneath this predator. We were going to get through this dammit.

I popped out onto the deck of the cabin, looked around for the best position, then popped to the roof. I perched in a crouched position on the eaves above the door we entered from. Hopefully he would follow my scent this way and this seemed the most direct path. I figured I had already mentally lost him before I left, so popping out and possibly increasing the scent couldn't put me in any worse position. Or could it? Thank god for meditation training. I zeroed in on my heart rate and breathing; slowed them as much as possible. I gave myself a mantra to recite.

I thought back over my training with Kvelin and my cousins over the years, playing vampire hide and seek. This was alarmingly close to how we would role play. I thought of my best plan to keep contact but avoid being killed. I thought through a series of what-ifs: if he did this, I would do that, etc. I wondered if we made it to the water, would the cold shock him out of it. Or should I pop there and make him come after me. Strategizing, as always, worked to calm me. I heard the door below me slide open and I edged closer to the drop. As soon as I saw a hint of blonde I dropped, right down onto his back. I immediately wrapped myself around him like a spider monkey and focused my energies, pushed them through my body and hands gripping him tightly. He hissed, trying to reach me, but I kept my breaths deep and slow. He stumbled forward on the deck and was able to wrench one of my arms free, his hand around my wrist. Still letting calm wash through me and him, I whispered my mantra into his ear over and over-both for him and for me. I was able to turn my wrist and slip it between his clenched fingers. I did so right as he took an angry bite at my wrist and only got air. Thank you yoga.

"Eric, you don't want to hurt me." Breathe, calm. He stumbled a bit, lurching forward and I held on. Calmcalmcalm. I could feel a slight shift, he was slowing down a tiny bit.

I whispered in his ear,"Eric. It's Sookie. Come back to me" several times. Damn, I wished I could see his eyes. He was trying to grab at my waist and an arm at the same time. The hand grab, I could wrench out of, but if he got me by the waist, there was no way I could get out of that. I definitely couldn't pop out of here now, the smell would undo any tiny amount of progress we had made.

Just when I hoped I was getting through, he walked us backwards toward the house and he slammed my back and head against the wall. Shit. I felt my grasp loosen as I saw stars. He took the opportunity to grab me and pull me around to his front. He was drooling and his fangs were huge at this point. He was going to strike. I pushed my forearm against his neck and grabbed his hair and pulled with everything in me. I kept repeating the mantra in his ear, trying to keep myself as calm as was possible, while still projecting to him. With the awkward, temporary hold I had on him, I was able to see his eyes. There was definitely some inner turmoil. I could see recognition one second, the predator the next and it switched back and forth many times, in the span of mere seconds.

He pulled my arm from it's block, and pinned them both behind me, painfully. Double shit. I had to hope my plan for what was next was going to work. I didn't have many options left. And I really hoped our first date didn't end in my rape and death. I gave it one last shot, before the bite I knew was coming, "Eric. It's Sookie. You don't want to hurt me. I'm giving myself to you, freely. Please come back to me." He gave me one last look, the predator, of triumph; he had caught his prey, before he reared his head back to strike. I willed myself to not struggle and tried to relax my body preparing for the intense pain that those huge saber tooth tiger fangs were going to inflict. And waited...

But I never felt any intense pain. At the last second, he hesitated. I felt him lick my neck. I felt a slight pinch and felt his fangs enter my vein, then a warm tingling that spread throughout my body. If I had been standing, my knees would have buckled at this intensity, this pleasure his sucking caused throughout my body, including my nether region. Uhm, this was not expected.

I tried to remember my plan, I turned my lips to his ear and whispered, "Eric, with each sip of my blood, feel me inside of you, calming you and bringing you back to me. Ahh..." It was getting harder to stay on task. Each draw from my blood he took, I felt it drawing from deep within me, from my core. I involuntarily moaned, which made him moan. His hand went from imprisoning and pinning my arms to gripping my bottom and rubbing me onto him. I wasn't sure how or when, but he had lost any clothing on his bottom half and the only thing stopping us from all out intercourse, was my still intact panties. "Ah, Eric, with each sip of my blood, feel me inside of you, calming you and bringing you back to me."

He made some sound of extreme pleasure, half growl, have moan, which made my girl bits clench and quiver. Bloody hell, I was very close to coming. But I could also feel myself getting weak from blood loss. Focus!

I cleared my head. I brought my hands to his neck and with one hand cleared his hair away from his jugular, the other hand I lay on his chest. One last whisper, "Eric, it's Sookie. It's me. I'm giving you my blood and with every pull you will feel me inside of you. I am taking your blood to replenish my own." I hoped he would be okay with this, but he was taking a lot of blood, and I had little options now. I could feel myself get a little weaker as I said the words, so I closed my eyes and bit. I had to bite really hard, which felt weird, but the skin did tear.

I felt his blood slowly ooze into my mouth and it was not what I expected-it was thicker than normal blood, but it was sweet and oaky. It reminded me of vintage Cabernet. I felt his blood flow through me and it was as if I could feel what he felt slowly envelope me. I felt pleasure and ecstasy that wasn't mine, but mingled with it. It was overpowering. I could feel myself re-powering, replenishing myself with his blood. I took the opportunity to push my life force, and hopefully whatever calm I had left into him. I worked because I felt him feel it. Wow-this was intoxicating, feeling what another person felt, as well as your own sensations.

He was grunting and groaning into my neck and I suddenly noticed I was gasping in to his. His draws on my neck slowed down but his grinding against my crotch sped up and increased in intensity. He was rubbing his engorged head right up against my clit. The coil was winding up in my abdomen and between my legs and I knew I couldn't hold off much longer. The wound on his neck healed quickly. "Unhh, Eric. Don't stop." What? Did I just say that?! I tightened my legs like a vise around his waist and pulled his head into my neck, as I bit down hard again, to reopen the wound. It was a chain reaction-he cried out at my bite, gave one more thrust against me, I gasped and mewled into the wounds on his neck as the waves of my orgasm washed over me. Either my sex, pulsing and clenching against him, or my bite, must have set him off, as he cried out and shuddered all over. I felt the coolness of his seed along my thighs and stomach. I licked at the blood left on his neck and shivered while he made tiny little thrusts against my super sensitive nub and lapped at my neck. We clung to each other, riding out our mutual pleasure.

A few moments of silence later, he was making no more moves to drain me or to anything else. "Eric," placing kisses along his closed bite and jaw.

"Sookie?" He still licked at my neck, but didn't bite again. He pulled back to look at me, still in a fog, but definitely returning to his senses. "What happened? Did I hurt you?"

"No. Scared me, a little, but there was definitely no pain involved," I smiled through my blush. Understanding dawned in his eyes and he gave me a crooked smile. "I'm glad you're back."

"Hang on to me." As if I weren't already wrapped around him like a second skin. He held onto me like I was the weight of a stuffed toy, pulled his pants that were pooled at his ankles up, reset the code for the door and shutters downstairs and zipped us upstairs into the bed. I was on my back among the luxurious layers of the bed again. "I will be right back." He was gone not more than a minute, then was back, wiping me with a warm wash cloth. He ran it up my thighs and across my abdomen gently. I looked up at him standing at the side of the bed, between my legs that were dangling off the bed. He looked distracted and disturbed.

"What is that look?"

He looked at me cautiously, "Do I have a look?"

"You look distant. Like you're not the same Eric from half an hour ago."

"I'm cleaning you, so I can take you home. If you would like to shower-"

I cut him off and shot up out of bed. "Take me home?! After all that-that-what just happened!? That's all I get-a deadly dry hump and an 'I'll call you'?! I don't think so! We are staying here and finishing this _date_, or whatever it has become and talking through this." I emphasized the last part by poking my finger into his chest. I was mad, but I felt the hotness of tears welling up, too. Because I wasn't embarrassed enough. I knew he wasn't trying to ditch me but he was avoiding talking about what happened and I wasn't letting that happen. And my feelings were a little hurt. I know neither of us could have anticipated the effect of my magic and what it would do to him, and that he couldn't control that aspect of his nature. But a chat or a hug before just depositing me home, would go a long way.

His eyes narrowed at me at first, at the finger poking into his chest. Then he must have noticed the tears sliding down my cheek. Because his look instantly changed. He hugged me to him so tight it whooshed the air out of me. "I'm so, so sorry, Sookie!" It was a broken whisper, barely audible, and it melted my heart. "I thought you would hate me or be disgusted with me. Or at least want your space from me for a while. I could have killed you!" He pulled back to look at me and I was shocked. The look on his face was pure anguish and he hugged me to him again, this time less tightly.

"But you didn't. I'm fine."

"Only because you were able to influence me."

"Maybe only because you were able to _let_ me influence you. You had the foresight to tell me to pop out of here. And you responded when I talked to you and sent you my calm."

"I responded when I felt it in your blood. Which I took without your permission. In excess. Again, I could have killed you. Drained you. And raped you." He gripped me harder.

I pulled his head out of my neck to stare at him. "But. You. Didn't. And you felt it before you took my blood-I saw it. And as far as taking my blood, I wanted you to have it. Maybe not in that type of scenario, but rest assured, I was going to offer it to you tonight. And it _didn't_ hurt. The way you took it-you could have struck at me with your fangs, which were huge at that point, for the record, and torn my flesh, but you didn't. You made it sensual" I ran a finger down his cheek and across his lips, "It brought me pleasure." I blushed.

"And, I took your blood without your permission, if only to replenish my own." His eyes got very...heated. "But I enjoyed it and I won't apologize for it. And you did _not_ rape me!" I gestured to my panties, still on. "No actual intercourse occurred. There was a little...grinding" I blushed again, for the millionth time, like a fool "and we obviously both enjoyed it, but you didn't rape me." I grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him.

"You could have drained me, but you didn't. You could have raped me, but you didn't. Neither of us could have known that little bit of magic would completely alter my scent. And all of your actions, whether we like them or not, were instinct. Like telling a cheetah not to run after a gazelle." He smirked. "And you fought against your instinct, at least enough to warn me and I was able to fend you off long enough to influence and calm you. We got through it." I stroked his hair.

"And then we dry humped and took each others blood. No harm, no foul, right?"

He gave me one of his contagious, swooning belly laughs. "Sookie, you amaze me. Your strength, your courage and spirit-you're like no one I have ever met. And I am thankful to the Gods, the Council, the Powers that be that brought you to me." He picked me up.

"Where are we going?"

With an absolutely dead sexy smile that made my hootch dance, "The shower."


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Hellurh my love bunnies. Okay, so here is the much awaited chapter. Sorry it didn't get posted sooner but life happened. Believe me, I do hate it when I can't get chapters out quickly. I wish I didn't have to work, clean up the house and do all the other boring shit that is not working on this story. So, I won't wax on like a fruit basket, as I usually do. Next stop, Lemon Train. Actually. scratch that. It's all out Fuck Town up in here. Yay! Enjoy and let me know if I should keep with lots of lemons or lots of plot. If it's 50/50, I guess I'll try to do both. Hmm...Anyplow, I own none of these characters, I have no beta, blah blah.**

Ch. 17

A shower? Gulp. Not sure why, but that intimidated me. That was so...personal and...well lit. Okay, you just fought off a fairy-drunk vampire. And had an orgasm from a dry hump. Suck it up. He's made it extremely obvious he wants you, so there's no reason to feel self-conscious. Deal with this. By the time I finished my mental pep talk, we were in the bathroom. He set me down and offered me a hair clip, which I thought was sweet. He turned to start the water and adjust the lighting to a dimmer, more ambient setting. I wasn't sure if he was just used to sexing up a lot of girls in the bathroom or if he knew I would be nervous.

When that was done, he turned back to me. I turned to the mirror quickly and twisted it up, knowing it would still probably get wet, but maybe not soaked. I turned back to him and in one swift movement, his clothing was gone. Guh- Do I look or not? I looked. He stood in front of me, in his naked glory, unashamed, fully erect, all six thousand inches of him. I let my gaze focus on his entire body, not just the holy grail. He was well sculpted all over. While his height made me think his limbs would be towards the lean side, they were actually thickly muscled. His thighs, chest and arms were solid, presumably from his life long ago, wielding axes and hoisting masts and it suited him. And me. I wanted to kiss, lick and bite every inch of his skin. I ran a hand across his chest, then his shoulder and trailed down his arm. He grabbed my hand as it got to his and brought it to his lips to kiss the back. He looked at me over the top of my hand and I felt that old familiar (at least when it came to him) clench down below.

"This is the first time I have been able to look at you, completely, almost naked. Though, for some unknown reason, you still have a few articles on, it's a wonderful start. May I help you undress?"

I nodded, suddenly shy again, even though I had been eyefucking him pretty good, mere seconds ago.

He stepped closer, leaned in and kissed my neck very softly. He slid both his hands up my arms, around my shoulders, one went behind my neck and rubbed the base lightly, the other unsnapped my bra closure. He slid the straps off, down my arms, his lips never losing contact with my skin. Once I was free of the bra, I brought my arms around to pull him closer into me, none of this inches away bullshit. He kissed my shoulders, my collarbone, then held my chin and gave me what was at first a gentle kiss, but quickly evolved to a deeper, more heated one.

I was simultaneously appreciative and frustrated he didn't immediately pay homage to my boobs the second he got my bra off. We tongued and teased each other for a few moments. As my breathing got heavier, he broke away and I felt empty. I must have made some kind of noise in protest, since he gave me THAT smile, the one that made me want to fuck the bones out of him. His breaking of the kiss was soon forgiven, as he kissed a trail downward-the notch at the base of my neck, my chest, in between my breasts, as his hands came up to palm them. I watched, enraptured, as he began caressing them, running his palm over my hard nipples. He kissed the tops of each one, then a chaste kiss to my nipples. Well that was disappointing.

He looked back up at me with THE look again. Ah, okay, this was just a sampler. He knelt down on his knees in front of me. He continued laying a kiss at the top of my stomach, at my navel, along the entire border of my panties. Uhhmm, it was now suddenly very warm. He slid his fingers into the hips of my panties, which would now forever be known as my lucky panties and ever. so. slowly. painfully. slowly. worked them down. He was kissing a trail along the skin he uncovered, but avoiding my center, until they were around my ankles and I kicked them off impatiently. I wanted more than heated looks and chaste kisses. He seemed to sense my thoughts, as he looked up at me, his chin resting right above my mound. I could tell he wanted the same, but was making himself go slow.

I put my hands on his shoulders and smiled down at him in understanding. He stood up and took me in. I tried not to blush and fidget as he took his time, his gaze slowly working it's way up, paying equal attention to all of me. When his eyes finally met mine, he had an awed look on his face. "Sookie...men have waged war for beauty like yours. Your body is so completely perfect and feminine and beautiful. And mine." Usually my hackles went up when I heard that kind of talk, but for this moment, it seemed right. And I hadn't I been calling him 'my Eric' all night?

"Thank you", I smoothed a stray piece of hair behind his ear. He wrapped an arm around my waist, pulled me flush against him and stepped us into the shower. I looked around in awe. How had he neglected to show me this on the tour, I did not know. Maybe he had planned on us ending up here one way or another so wanted this as a surprise. It had the rainfall shower head and side sprayer/massagers. The whole thing was tile and it had a little built-in bench, which also had it's own sprayer. The floor tiles were already warmed. Yum, heated tile. Of course he had a luxurious state of the art shower, but who was complaining.

I looked up at him and he was watching my reaction with amusement.

"Like it?" he squeezed my waist.

"A little," leaning my head onto his chest while a sprayer worked a pattern onto my back. "Heaven is more like it." I closed my eyes.

Suddenly, he was rubbing my back with a soaped up bath puff. He somehow managed to make it feel like a sensual massage. I think I was almost purring. Once he scrubbed as far as he could reach with his hands, given our position, "Turn please." I did as I was told.

He knelt down and finished my lower legs, "Turn again please." I did but started getting that slightly embarrassed feeling again. I felt so exposed-I was naked and he was mere inches from my body. All of it.

Back on his haunches, he started on my feet, scrubbing, getting each toe and I couldn't stifle a giggle. He looked up at me, innocently, but continued the torture a few minutes longer till I was dancing around trying to hide my feet from him. "Okay, I'll stop." If he was trying to ease any nervousness, it had worked. Continuing up my legs to my girly bits-he delicately bathed the top of my mound, went between my thighs, rubbing the soap there, but never going further, never penetrating. I felt a little disappointed, but figured he had a plan. He kept rubbing his soapy fingers in the crux of my thighs, between them, to the very delicate part, where my legs meet my hootch. Watching him from above was almost as pleasurable as the sensation he was giving me because it looked like he was penetrating me with his fingers. He may not have been directly touching _there _but it sure felt like it. And the look on his face...gulp...If he could have devoured me with his eyes, he would have. Apparently he caught scent of my arousal because his nostrils flared. That was inevitable. My eyes slid shut and my head lolled back and a strange noise came from my throat. But before I could analyze it too much, the feeling he was making was gone. I felt empty when his fingers left that spot and moved on. He soaped up my hips and belly, until he got to my breasts. My head still back, my eyes popped open and I looked down at him. He was very intently looking at them. Sitting up on his knees, he was now eye level with them. Instead of continuing with the puff, he squeezed some soap into his palm and lathered them up.

Palming them, he let the heels of his palms slide over my nipples and the feeling shot right to my center. I grabbed his arms for support and possibly to keep him there. He ran his huge hands around their entirety, making massaging circles and occasionally stroking my hardened nipples. I watched him, simultaneously enjoying his ministrations, yet wishing the shower was over and we were in bed. He repeated the process a few times, just enough to get me even more hot and bothered. His nostrils flared again. Sadly, I thought for both of us, he moved upwards with his hands. Standing he worked my chest and neck with his soapy hands. He massaged my shoulders and neck until I thought I might turn into jelly. When he was done, he pushed me back a bit to rinse off. I was now tainted for regular showers and I told him so. He laughed heartily and pulled me in for a hug.

I felt the Viking Junior up against my belly and got a devilish smile on my face. "My turn!" He gave me a sideways look, probably wondering what I was up to. I grabbed the body poof and soaped it up. "Turn." I bossed him and he did. I started on his back, his shoulders. I spent the proper amount of time there, though the whole time I was staring in anticipation at his delicious butt. When I finally got to his lower back, I dropped the puff and switched to my soapy hands. Running my hands over those yummy bottom cheeks, I squeezed/massaged them like they were my own personal toys. He must have enjoyed it because he leaned forward to put his hands up against the wall of the shower.

I let my fingers slide under his bottom, and in between his legs. I massaged the very tops of his thighs, then ran my thumbs up in between to just barely brush against his balls. When I did that, he jumped just a little, so of course I repeated it several times, "accidentally" letting the back of a soapy finger graze across the skin. I ran my nails down the backs of his thighs and I heard a strangled moan come from him. I felt kind of empowered. Grabbing the poof, I cleaned a path down his lower legs, to his feet. "Turn." I didn't look up at him yet, I was saving it. Scrubbing his feet, he wasn't ticklish there, I found out. I slowly made my way up his legs, taking way too long on his knees, just to draw it out. When I finished with those, I mimicked his action by lathering my hands. I made a silent wish that I would do this right and please him. I slowly worked my hands up his muscled legs, I avoided looking at his glorious man sword. When he had properly lathered thighs, I took a deep breath and looked. So close, so erect and powerful, so shiny from the water, so perfect. I couldn't stop myself, I leaned forward kissed the tip and it jumped. I looked up at Eric looking down at me, eyes black from dilated pupils, fangs down-which the sight of, now gave me a little jolt in my core and I figured I was doing something right. I kissed a little trail down the base to his balls, which for some reason I felt compelled to nuzzle with my lips, so I did. It must have been the right thing to do, since he grabbed the back of my head. He didn't pull me forward or trap me there, so I kissed my way back up to the tip. Yeah, empowering.

I let my soapy hands swoop in and "clean" him thoroughly. I palmed his soaped up balls in one hand while I slid up and down his shaft with the other. I could feel him get harder and thicker as I repeated those actions a few times, which turned me on even more, as well as the grunts and groans he was making. I wanted to look him in the eyes, so stood up and continued stroking and pulling him. His eyes locked onto mine for a few seconds, then slid down to watch my hands giving him pleasure, then he looked back up at me. Fuck. I could have come undone, the visuals were just that intense. I leaned in for a kiss. He wrapped his hands around my waist and pulled me in tightly and devoured my mouth. Our new position and the tonguing he was giving my mouth made me lax my grip on him. He took that as a cue to take over, so slipped his hand under my butt, pulling me into him, his hard length up against my sensitive center. I made a noise of protest at having to relinquish my hold on him and he pulled back, "Are you okay? Am I hurting you?"

"No. I just-I wasn't done yet." I pouted.

"Don't worry, you'll get it back." He went back to kissing me, while kneading my butt and rubbing his engorged cock against my slick nub. He walked me backwards and I ran up against the built-in bench. Ooh, that had warming tiles too. He broke our kiss and looked at me hungrily. I gulped. Going back down on his knees, he pushed my back up against the wall of the shower, but pulled my bottom out a little. "Relax, Sookie. I won't hurt you. Just keep your eyes on me." I nodded silently. He kept his gaze locked on me as he leaned down and slowly placed kisses on the inside of my thighs. I was turned on beyond belief, nervous and I couldn't tear my eyes away. After another kiss or two, he leaned forward and ever so lightly ran his tongue up my slit, from bottom to the top. I felt warmth immediately flood into the area, I moaned, then he moaned as he tasted my wetness on his tongue. He grabbed my hips, as if I were going anywhere, and buried his face into me. He licked and sucked every inch, running his tongue, sometimes softly, other times more rough along my folds. Ye gads-I was so close. Just watching him devour me and enjoy doing it, was enough to make me come. He kept circling my nub with his tongue which was making me crazy, but never fully putting any full amount of pressure there. He must have read my mind, because he circled the area with his tongue one last time, then sucked it into his mouth and lapped at it with his tongue. I cried out and thought I might come up off the bench, but he anticipated it, because he held me down by my thighs. After I settled down, he continued. Slipping a finger inside me, he alternated between suckling and flicking my nub with his tongue and running it along my now uber sensitive folds. He slipped a hand under my bottom and pulled me way forward, so I was almost riding his face. He picked up his pace and slid another finger in, sliding them in and out of my wetness. His fingers inside of me, his mouth suctioned onto my folds and clit, I could feel the tendrils wind up, "Ah, Eric, mmmm..."

Just when I thought all of this couldn't feel any better, I felt him curl his fingers forward inside of me. I was panting and writhing and moaning, riding his face. He must have found his mark, because as soon as he ran his fingers across it, I clenched up, he moaned into me and the vibrations set me off. I felt every fiber in me explode and quiver and spread out all over my body. I felt and saw stars explode. I was making little bucking movements with my hips, still riding out waves of pleasure. When I looked down at him he was still watching me, suckling at me, lapping up every ounce of moisture from me. His eyes had a dreamy, faraway look. When I could finally speak, "Eric...uhm...I-" He put a finger over my lips. He stared at me for a moment. "What?"

"I am burning an image of you exactly as you are right now into my mind."

"I probably look a hot mess."

"You look like a beautiful woman who has been thoroughly pleased. Hair disheveled, cheeks pink, lips and breasts swollen-a goddess."

He turned the water off, had me wrapped in a warm towel and was toweling me off in a split second. He seemed to be focused on what he was doing because he no longer spoke, he just hurriedly finished his task. Once we were both dry, he carried me to the bed and lay me down. I might have protested about being carried, but my knees were still weak from the tongue-lashing I had just received. I laughed at my own joke. I was giddy. The velvety softness of the furry blankets was an additional stimulus that felt heavenly against my bare skin. He lay down on top of me, his weight on me felt good. He was nuzzling my neck and I felt his rock hard length pressed against me. Oh! I felt awful. He was probably ready to burst. He had shown so much restraint. As though I hadn't just had the most powerful orgasm of my life, I felt myself heat up down there at the thought of us finally having sex. Yes, what he just did was beyond fantastic but this would be something different. We would be joining together. I would feel him inside me-something I wanted more than just an orgasm.

He kissed down my chest to my breasts. He palmed them and massaged them. Bringing his lips to my nipple, he rubbed against one with his mouth, and tongue then switched to the other breast. I arched up into his attentions. He made a swirl around the sensitive areolas then blew on them. By this time I was wiggling and panting, I reached down to take his huge length into my hand. And I gave it a squeeze. He looked up at me from my breasts, a look of surprise and rapture on his face. "Please, Eric. Now."

He smiled a panty-melting smile, if I had been wearing any. "As you wish, my Princess."

"Ooh-you!" I pinched his butt. He gave each breast a nip and nibbled back up towards my neck. Leaning into my ear, he suckled on an earlobe, whispering,

"Are you ready for me, my Sookie?"

"More than ready, Eric." He returned to my ear. I gripped his shoulders, "Please!"

Tracing the outline of my ear with his tongue, "Oh? Such a rush? Did I not please you sufficiently mere moments ago?"

I reached around to entwine my fingers in his hair, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, "You did. But now I want to please you." That stopped him.

He pulled his head back to look at me, his eyes melting me. "Sookie, I have never experienced anyone who could do the things you do to me. Something so simple as your words have the ability to undo me." I had not relinquished my hold of him and stroked him again. He poised himself at my entrance. "Sookie, this may hurt a little, but I promise the pain will soon be gone."

"I know. I'm ready." He leaned in to kiss me, which I returned, but when I felt him press against my entrance, I broke the kiss. "I want to watch."

His eyebrows shot up and he got a devilish look of glee and I blushed. He leaned back, and I sat up on my elbows, so we could both watch as he pressed himself against me. Unsurprisingly, I was more than prepared, thanks to him, so he slipped his head in through my slick center with ease, though it was a very tight fit. I felt a slight tearing and pressure, but nothing too intense. I just took some deep breaths and relaxed my body as much as possible and the pain was gone. Feeling myself stretch and wrap around him was such a delicious feeling, as was watching him slowly push into me. And watching his face, his expressions of pleasure. I could tell it was taking some serious restraint not to just push his way in. As he buried himself into me to the hilt, we both gave a shudder of pleasure. He leaned into me for a second and stilled himself, "Gods Sookie. You are perfect for me."

"Mmmhhmm," I was having a hard time speaking. The feeling of being so filled was so new and different." He started the rhythm up gently and I leaned up to watch again. Seeing him push into me and come back out, all slick and shiny from my wetness and hard as a rock was the sexiest thing I think I had ever seen. Aside from looking down at Eric while I rode his face. It was a tie, anyway. He tilted and rocked his hips with each thrust into me, so I laid back down to feel it more deeply. The motion he was making was rubbing right up against the perfect spot, and I moaned up into his neck which I was clinging to. I had my legs clamped around his waist, too. Each pull out, felt slippery and sensual then he would slide slowly back in and give a little extra thrust with his hips right up against my pelvic bone. I did not want to come this soon and I knew he was being gentle for my sake. I lay back and looked up at him. "Harder."

"You are sure? It won't be too rough for you?"

"Bring it." The corner of his mouth went up. Challenge accepted.

He leaned back and pulled almost the whole way out and I whine a little. Before I could finish the sound, he slammed into me. Oh! Then came back out almost all the way again. Oh. my. shit. The depths of different sensations were surely going to kill me. This was too much pleasure for one person to experience. I looked at him in anticipation and I wasn't disappointed-he slammed back into me. I felt it in my stomach, or so it seemed. I was moaning, arching my hips up for more, so he repeated this process several times. I was getting close again. Oh well, there were worse things that could happen. On one of his deep thrusts into me, "Don't tease me, Eric. Harder and faster, please." I think he liked it when I said please-file that away for later. He took my tongue hostage and kissed me deeply before grabbing my hips and giving me what I wanted. He plunged into me hard and fast, still managing to do that hip thrust that rubbed right against my clit. "Eric, I want you to bite me." He stopped his thrusting and I felt him try to pull back to protest, so I tightened my arms around his neck. "No. I took your blood tonight, I've been replenished. You don't have to take a lot. I'm just asking you to bite me. It brought me pleasure. And I know it brings you pleasure." I put my lips against his ear. "Please, Eric." I felt his body lose it's tension. I arched my hips up to get him to resume, which he did. He pulled back and sat back on his haunches and brought me with him. I gasped at the new position and how different it felt. He was moving my hips up and down and I could feel my nub rubbing against his pubic bone even more this way. Oh, I was going to come very soon. I took over and moved up and down his length on my own, and he must have enjoyed that because he leaned back, watching me ride him. I only had a few more strokes in me and I was there.

My panting and writhing giving me away, he leaned into me and I felt him lick a spot on my neck. As soon as I felt the tiny prick of his fangs in my neck, I came wildly, screaming out his name and something else, I had no clue honestly. I bit into his shoulder, though I didn't draw blood. "Ah-Sookie!Mine!" Again, not sure if it was him having my blood, feeling me come around him or me biting him, but he came right behind me. He picked me up like I was a doll and slammed himself into me, which only prolonged my orgasm. I felt him swell up inside me and my walls clench around him, and he was saying something in his old language against my neck. The sheer intensity I felt at our mutual pleasure was mind blowing. Surely not all sex was like this. I didn't want to move, just feel the waves of ecstasy keep washing over me. As we both rode it out, our bodies shook collectively with our tremors, both still making small movements with our hips. I felt my breathing return to normal. He was licking at my neck. He must not have taken very much at all. He gently laid us down on the bed, him on bottom and me on top, still joined at our sex. I lay snuggling into his neck, god his smell was so delicious, it made me want to climb into him.

We lay there for a while, until I finally broke the silence, "Is it always like that?" He laughed heartily, "No, my Sookie, it is rarely like that." I was satisfied with that answer so lapsed back into my dazed silence. So this was afterglow. We were rudely interrupted by my stomach growling. I felt Eric shift, he flipped me so I was on my back and he went into the bathroom. Even though he had no body heat, I felt cold when he left. When he came back with a warm washcloth to clean me up I told him so. He smiled sweetly. "Good. I like that you miss me when I'm gone." He handed me a thick fluffy robe. "Come on, Buttercup, let's get you some food." I padded behind him, then stopped short.

"Ooohhh...Hey, I get it, the Princess Bride. As you wish, Buttercup. Haha!" We exchanged quotes the whole way down the stairs into the kitchen.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Hellurh, muh smexy bitches. So, I couldn't resist one more lemony chapter, since we waited so long. Actually, it's more like, do you really think they'd only have sex once that night? Lol, not so much. I couldn't, in good conscience, just skim over their first time. But I am itching to get back into some plot progression, so next chappy will be fun. Thanks for the reviews and the input on which you guys prefer for smut vs plot. I will try to give a little of both, then, since that seems to be the consensus. Okeedoke, gird your loins for some more sexy time. I own nothing, characters are Charlaine's, I have no beta yakyakyakkityyakyak. Peace, love and Viking sex.**

Ch 18

"Incontheevable!"

Hearing Eric perfectly lisp the line from the movie while naked, no less, had my sides hurting from laughter. He ran through every quotable line while he moved around the kitchen and I attempted to calm my crazed looking hair in a mirror on the wall. Smoothing it back into a loose ponytail, that was as good as it was going to get, and sat down at the island in the kitchen.

I was wiping tears from my eyes as he whisked a perfectly arranged, cooked plate of salmon, asparagus and baby new potatoes in front of me. I stared at it as if he'd handed me a plate of worms. "Uh-what happened to leftovers?"

"Do you prefer leftovers to this? I can exchange them." He turned toward the refrigerator.

"No! No, I'm just surprised. Where did this come from? Did you just cook it? Or..." I trailed off because he was smiling at me like I was special.

"I did not cook it, though I can cook. I had it delivered. I also have breakfast for tomorrow, in case we stay here."

"Uh-huh. Confident, are we?"

An eyebrow arched upward, "Was I wrong?"

"No, guess not." I played with my food. "Smart ass."

"No, just realistic and forward-thinking."

I chose not to respond to that, since he was right, so took a bite of my food. It was delicious. "Ohmigod, this is awesome! Where is it from?"

"A semi-local place that makes gourmet meals and delivers them."

"Ah, well they did a good job. Did you just say you cook?" I tried to look ladylike while I literally inhaled all my food. Magic, fighting and sex can work up an appetite, apparently.

"I can cook. Most vampire have had to go quite some time without being detected, so cooking, pretending to eat, etc. were necessities. I've been told I'm quite good at it, though it's been a few decades since I've tried it again. I will cook for you some time."

"I would like that."

"Do you mind if I check in with Pam?"

"Oh! Pammy! Not at all." I felt bad for 2.3 seconds, then got over it when I remembered what just went on upstairs. Shiver. "Would she mind if you put her on speaker?"

"Do we really mind if she minds?"

"No."

That settled, he dialed her cell phone which she answered on the third ring "Master."

"Pamela. How has your evening been?"

"Oh, just faaan-tastic. " She couldn't sound more bored if someone paid her.

"Hi, Pam!" I chimed in.

"Oh, don't you two sound cozy. Watching movies and braiding each others hair, or did you finally put me out of my misery and fuck like wild animals?"

"The latter." I answered before Eric could say something vague just to annoy her. Not like she didn't walk in on us dry humping every five minutes.

"Thank you! I'll expect full details from both of you later. Compton stopped by, said he needed to speak with you, Eric, though he wouldn't say why, as if he couldn't just call you. I have a feeling he came to drool on our friend _Suzie_ some more."

"Ugh, what a creep."

"Indeed. And we got a call from Longshadow's maker."

"I will handle that tomorrow night. How is business tonight?"

"Busy. Boring. There's no one here to cause trouble, or to embarrass."

"Aww, Pammy, do you miss me?"

"Let's not go that far, Princess, I said 'bored'."

"It's okay Pam, I miss you, too." I laid it on thick and Eric rolled his eyes.

"If you miss me so badly, I can head right over and join you-"

"Uhm, no thanks. I can wait till tomorrow to see you. And you two better cut the 'Princess' shit out right now."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Ooh! Don't call me that either-that's even worse." Eric was stifling his laughter at our banter. We carried on a little longer, with Pam calling me every name she could think of that went along the Princess or royalty theme, until Eric interrupted.

"I hate to break up such witty repartee, but I'm taking my Sookie back. All is well then, Pam?"

"I am fine. I will survive here alone and bored, but you two better be back to entertain me tomorrow. And I wasn't kidding about details."

We said our good nights and I walked my empty plate to the sink. Before I could wash it, Eric had me by the waist, pressed up against the counter, nipping at the back of my neck and I squealed. He slid his hands into the front of my robe, technically his robe, and massaged my breasts, pinching my nipples lightly, which I felt down to my toes. "Didn't you say something at the restaurant about desert?"

My voice hitched in my throat, "Yes, but somebody had desert earlier, so no more for you or you'll get fat."

He stopped mauling my neck and breasts and spun me around, "Fat? Moi? Does this physique look like it could ever hold an ounce of fat on it?" He preened.

"Maybe..." I eyed him sideways, poking his chest, then his waistline, finally letting my hand grab around his hardened shaft, "Here."

His eyes darkened dangerously, and he leaned in to whisper, "Madam, I can assure you, that is not fat. If you would allow me a demonstration," he was slowly walking me backwards toward the living room. Before I could bat an eyelash, he had me naked, on my back, on the rug in front of the fireplace.

I giggled. "Do you have a thing for the whole bear skin rug cliché or what?"

He gave me a crooked smile, "No. Though if I really think about it, maybe I do have an affection for them." He got a far away look. "Back when I was human, warmth meant you survived another winter. Pelts, furs, skins were highly valuable because they not only showed you were a capable hunter but also that you could care for your family. We would have many people in one roomed houses and there often wasn't a bed, at least nowhere near modern standards. If we had anything it was either a wood bench that doubled as seating or one thin mattress made of straw and leaves. That usually went to the elderly or the very young of the family, to keep them warmer. But mostly it was all our pelts, and our wool textiles, that we used for bedding. It feels right, having you here, on the rug, in front of a hearth. So, maybe I do 'have a thing' for the cliché."

It was a quiet, sweet glimpse into his past, listening to him reminisce, so I didn't dare tease him like I had earlier. His hair spilled forward onto us both, the flames from the fireplace giving his face a warm glow. I kissed him softly on the lips. He deepened it, slipping his tongue in. If I never kissed another man for the rest of my life, I would be content, because Eric's kisses had to be the best on any planet, realm or in existence. The end. It was like he made love to my mouth, to my tongue. Within seconds of his kiss, my hands were wandering all over his body, impatient to have him inside me again and not just his tongue. I ran my hands down his back to his butt, which I couldn't resist squeezing. I thought I could get him to get the picture of what I wanted by arching against him. I even made a little noise of protest.

He looked down on me knowingly, "In a hurry lover?" Shit, what his voice did to my body. I felt my temperature heat up ten degrees.

"Gah! You make me crazy, Northman!"

He leaned in and nipped my ear, "Welcome to my world, Princess."

Ooh-that was it. I hitched my leg behind one of his, grabbed his arm on the same side and, in a move Kvelin would be proud of, I flipped him. The rest of the move, required a straddle hold around his hips. In a fighting situation, it was so you couldn't be thrown off immediately after the flip. In this situation however, I had inadvertently placed my hot and wet hootchie right against his rock hard length. The look of surprise on his face, followed by instant lust almost made me laugh. Almost. If I hadn't been wanting him as much as he was clearly wanting me.

Guess I just kicked it up a notch, I was pleased with myself for taking control. Being on top was pretty liberating and powerful. I looked down on him, mimicking one of his own cocky smirks. His fangs slid slowly down and he got that dangerous, sexy look in his eyes. "My little fairy likes being in control, eh?" I didn't answer him, just kept his gaze, as I leaned back and ran my nails along his thighs. I continued my right hand up till I reached his balls and palmed them, lightly squeezing and caressing them, watching for signs of what he liked. He liked it all, I decided. I slowly rocked against him, sliding myself up and down his shaft. My left hand grabbed his hand and brought it to my neck, slid it down to my breast, which he promptly began to squeeze and tease my nipple. Though I had started this, I wasn't sure how much more I could take. I was very impatient for him.

Leaning forward, I brought my breast to his mouth to which he latched on and suckled for all he was worth. He teased that one with his tongue while he palmed the other. I reached down to slide my hand over him, squeezing and sliding my hand up and down, working his length. He moaned, and I felt the slight, delicious sting of his fangs on either side of my nipple. Fuck me. I gasped, grabbed a hold of him, poising his tip at my folds. He broke his mouths' stronghold to grunt out, "Sookie-" but instead of waiting to hear what he had to say, I sat on him in one flail swoop. Ow. Oh. It both hurt and yet felt amazingly good, but it did take me by surprise, so I half gasped, half cried out.

I thought once you did it the first time, any pain was done. Eric grabbed my hips to still me, not that I was planning on moving for the moment. I needed to absorb that feeling and took a few deep breaths. "Sookie, I wanted to tell you to go slow..."

"Oh. I didn't think it would hurt anymore."

"It depends on the position. This is a whole new angle. You're also probably a little sore from before, too." He brushed a piece of my hair behind my ear. "I'm sorry."

After a few breaths, I was fine. I was back to feeling that sense of power of being in control. And the delicious feeling of him filling me completely. "Hush, I'm fine." I rocked forward a little and the incredible sensation, completely different from how it felt before, made me fall forward onto his chest. So, this is what my cousins were talking about. He smiled at me, seeming to understand what I was experiencing. Keeping his eyes on me, he moved his hips up gently and I felt his length bury itself in my slick folds. My eyes rolled back into my head and I panted out something incoherent. He repeated this several more times, except this time I rocked my hips back to get him that much deeper, which found that magic spot deep inside of me and also made my nub rub against his pelvic bone. I was not going to last long and I didn't like that I seemed to have lost my position (ha) of power.

I leaned back to be upright again, lifted my legs up until just barely the tip of his head was inside of me, then sat down on him hard. He almost came undone and looked at me, his eyes glittering and his fangs huge. I touched them, suddenly wanted them inside of me again. What was wrong with me? Why was I obsessed with them? Was it because they were so forbidden all my life? File that away for later thinking. I slid up again, then slammed back down and we both cried out. He grabbed my hips before I could lift up again. He ground his hips against mine, rubbing my throbbing core several times. Before I could stop him, because dammit, I didn't want to give up my control just yet, he sat up.

Wow, that was a whole new sensation here again. He lifted me up, then slammed back into me, followed by grinding up against my clit again and again. Before I could even catch my bearings, I started to come. I cried out and leaned into his neck biting him in pleasure and frustration. He growled and pulled me by my hair, exposing my neck. "Is this what you want, my little fairy? You like when I bite you?"

"Yes! Please, Eric, bite me." This time, he struck a little harder than in the past and I yelped but held him into my neck while he continued to thrust upward into me. He barely drew any blood at all, mostly just suckled the wound, but it was enough to satisfy my strange urge to be be bitten by him. I was completely surprised when I felt myself begin to come again.

That must have brought Eric close to the edge, because he grunted, "Not yet." gave a quick lick to my neck, then spun me over so I was on my knees and he was entering me from behind. I was still feeling the last waves of my orgasm, my muscles still clenching when he flipped us into the new position. So, holy fuck! Was I completely surprised at yet another completely different feeling assaulting me. He had his hands gripping my hips as he gave several hard and fast thrusts, followed by several slow, deep ones. I could feel that special spot get rubbed by him on every thrust and it took all I had not to let my knees buckle. I arched my back and pushed back onto him-he was very close, I could feel it inside me. I think this was my favorite position thus far-you could feel so much.

He brought his hands up to palm my breasts and use them to pull me back on to him harder. I brought one hand up to my lips and sucked two fingers into my mouth. The second I bit down, though not enough to draw blood, on the fleshy pads of his fingertips, he came. At this angle, I could feel him come, and I never wanted it to stop-his pulsing head rubbed deep inside me as he roared out something in his native language, though I heard my name mixed in there somewhere. While making small little thrusts as he rode out the last moments of his orgasm, he placed small little kisses along my spine.

Laying us on our sides, he faced me towards him while I caught my breath and marveled at how he didn't have to catch his. Once mine had slowed to a manageable pace, I realized he was staring at me.

"Hi."

"Hi. Wow." I panted.

He chuckled and smoothed my hair away from my damp neck. "Yes, it was very wow. We are very good together, Sookie. Though some things, I am struggling with," A brief frown flashed across his face, then was gone, "you make me feel things I have not felt in a very long time."

I propped my head on my elbow, "Thank you and I'm glad, but what do you struggle with?" He pulled me closer and linked our free hands together, then held them up, examining them. He was quiet for a bit, but he was gathering his thoughts. I just let him work through whatever it was and radiated my calmness toward him, but didn't push it, not wanting to force it on him if he didn't want to feel it.

"I do not like how little self-control I feel I have when I am with you. I lose myself in you, Sookie, and I am not used to that. Nor do I like it, in the respect that it makes me feel like a newly made vampire. All fang and drive with no control. I am usually always in control"

"And you don't think I feel the same? I have been raised by Fae, to distrust and fear you and yet here I am. I'm drawn to you like a drug, begging you to bite me! When it's been drilled into my head for years that to allow any vampire to have my blood, hell to even smell me would guarantee my death! It's a little more than nuts." I traced circles on his chest, then slid my hand into the hair at his neck to lightly kiss him. "But, I think somehow we balance each other. For some reason, in ways that are too deep to wrap my brain around right now, we were brought together."

"We will just have to enjoy it, then, no matter how out of character we are."

"Agreed."

We were quiet together, lost in our thoughts. Somewhere along the line, my thinking led to becoming very sleepy. I heard a light beep and a weird noise, which jolted me out of my daze for a moment.

"The shutters." He lifted me and carried me upstairs.

"What about tomorrow? Should I just stay here then go back with you in the evening?"

"You may certainly leave, if you like. I would offer my car, and I could fly back, but I don't feel very confident with the brief lesson you had on how to drive it."

"I'll stay then. There's nothing overly pressing that I have to do, other than work, and since I'm with my boss..."

He pulled the covers back and slid me under, then slid in next to me. "I suppose I can allow it this one time." He smirked, then got serious. "I would like that, waking up with you here, I mean. I haven't gone to rest with someone, other than Pam, in a very, very long time."

I could feel sleep dragging me under. "Well, I feel very honored, then." I felt him kiss my forehead and then I was out, to a heavy dreamless sleep.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Hello my darlings. I have missed you and this story so much. The last seven days have been filled with nothing but RL bullshit, which mostly translates to 12 hour workdays with no day off. So, yeah, that happened. It took me forever to get this chappy together since I only had enough energy for a wee bit each night. THEN, more smut wanted to happen. I fought with It, tried to beat It with a stick, but It just wouldn't listen or stay away. And, let's face it, it's not like they could just wake up, sit at the breakfast table, while they read their newspapers and sipped coffee before heading off to the office, right?. So, I quadruple promise, plot advancement is ahead. I'm as excited as a monkey at a banana buffet. As always, I love your reviews-they crack my ass up, especially when I'm at work in a foul mood and I hear someone needed a cigarette after, or a towel down. Goal accomplished.**

**The usual: I own nothing. I have no beta. I love you. Holla.**

Ch 19

Waking the next morning, late afternoon technically, by the look of the clock, was an odd experience. I had never woken up next to anyone other than my girl cousins. My first urge was to snuggle with him, hoping it would wake him up. But spooning up against him, it dawned on me he really was dead for the day. After laying there for a bit, letting the fog of sleep wear off, I gave my handsome Viking a quick kiss, vowing to be back at sunset. Padding down the stairs my stomach gracefully reminded me I was off my normal eating pattern by growling voraciously.

After heating a skilfully prepared omelet with home fries, I inhaled it and gave mental thanks to the thoughtful smart ass upstairs for thinking of minor things like me needing breakfast. Grabbing my phone, I listened to a voicemail from Claudine, hoping I was fine and telling me to call or text as soon as I could. Calling her back, I got her voicemail so assured her I was fine and stayed the night with Eric and that I would be home later. Afterward, I sat back and tried to absorb everything that happened last night and everything I'd learned. I had conquered a vampire. Sex was mind-blowingly awesome. Correction, sex with Eric. I believed him when he said we were good together. There was a chemistry between us I had never even felt a fraction of with another person. And it had to explain why I felt the need to toss out any sense of self-preservation when I was with him. Even when I was in, what most would consider pretty imminent danger, I charged head on. But only with Eric. I didn't fear him. Common sense and my training told me I was supposed to.

Was there something wrong with me? Or was it something about us together? And there was no one I knew of to ask about similar experiences. When my magic smell sent him into his primal fairy munching craze, he was able to shake his instinct to drain me. Or fend it off temporarily. When I saw his fangs, instead of fear them, like I should, I wanted them. Everything about us was the opposite of what I thought it would be.

My mind wandered to the odd circumstances of how we came to meet. I dearly loved my kin, but I had seen how my great-grandfather dealt with other species. He could be quite conniving and very self-motivated, well Fae-motivated, to be fair. While I knew he wouldn't want to directly hurt me, it would not surprise me if he did utilize me somehow for Fae purposes. Of course, in his mind, he would justify it. I immediately felt like an ass for thinking like that, knowing he and the others were under constant threat right now, from Breandan's people. While I was here, sexing up Eric. So frustrating! Why wouldn't The Council intervene? The Council-what was their part in this? And did I believe Claudine's admission of hearing from the Ancient Pythoness that I was "destined for more"?

Gah! I didn't like the feeling that others know more about my life than I do. After thinking of a few more things I had no answers for, I gave up. Okay, things I can help: Eric getting his brother back. Was Breandan seriously that dumb? Or was he just blinded by his insanity to kill Niall and any halflings that were left and close off all the portals? Although, he actually pulled it off thus far, so he must not be that dumb or crazy. He disappeared in that way only fairies can, with Alberik, and Eric couldn't find him. It was a true weakness, since vampire couldn't enter that realm. Or could they? Hmm...that was a thought. I had been told that over the years, but I had also been told a lot of things about them that had been proven wrong lately. While it was day there, the majority of the time, there were periods of night as well, though brief. We didn't need much sleep, I had assumed that was why. Niall said, we needed a few hours of dark, if only to appreciate the beauty of the stars. Could a vampire enter our realm during that time? What if that was just a myth to deter them, after all, what vampire in his right mind would want to test the theory and be burned up immediately? Assuming they found a way in.

Okay, this was going to require some thinking and Eric's input. But before that ball got rolling, I had to get message to my great-grandfather that we needed to talk to him soon. I trusted Claudine to tell him, but the fairy sense of urgency was not always...urgent enough. What to do? Now I had a wild hair and I really wanted to just pop to the palace, talk to him and pop back here. But I needed a cousin to help me go such a long distance. My teleporting abilities weren't strong enough. And Claudine had just told me they were to keep me here at all cost. Wait! The portal! There was a portal into the realm near the house in Bon Temps! It was how my grandfather came upon my grandmother, Adele. And he had told me, if I ever needed it, when I was visiting with her, to find it and it would allow me entry. I was pacing now. If I could get there from here...I could go from here to a spot a few miles away, and repeat that, going only as far as my ability took me, until I got to Bon Temps. There were warning flags going off in my head. I shouldn't do that. The route there was unfamiliar. And my clothing options were the robe I was currently wearing or my dress and heels from last night.

Argh! My helplessness was driving me nuts. I had to do something with my frustrated energy. Giving a quick glance to the clock-wow, it was already 5 in the evening, but still a few hours before Eric was up. I decided to pop outside. I fell asleep before he could give me any codes or instructions for the shutters, so maybe it was assumed I was to stay inside. Psht! Anyway!

Last night I had observed it was a very secluded area, but I did a mental perimeter scan to be sure. Nothing, so I popped out. The sun was low in the sky, but it was still warm enough to be gorgeous. The deck was long and lead straight out to the water. There were some lounge chairs at the edge, though I wasn't sure why. I corrected myself; though he may not bask in the sun, maybe Eric came out here to look at the night sky. Looking back at the house, I noticed a little nook around the side that I had not noticed before. As I approached I smelled chlorine. Hmm. The deck wrapped around the cabin and the partial overhang of trees gave the area a cozy sense of seclusion. Son of a B! It was a hot tub. I flipped the cover back-it was squeaky clean. And it was on. Had he had it ready for us, but then with all of last nights shenanigans, forgotten all about it? Oh, I was so going in. I looked around still a little nervous about someone being out here-nothing but river and trees. Slipping off the robe and setting it on one of the loungers, I stepped into the hot water.

Cripes this was delicious. Part of me felt bad, like I should have saved this moment for Eric. Oh well, last night had been rough and I deserved a good hot soak. If he was really upset, I'd make it up to him. I lay there, letting the warmth and bubbles wash over my muscles that I hadn't realized were a little sore till just now. I allowed my mind to run rampant for a bit, still churning over the thoughts that had preoccupied me a few minutes ago. I wondered if Eric would be on board with me going to the portal. It was only to help him and Alberik, so I thought he might. I was a little worried that, if there truly was immediate trouble at the palace, I would not leave. I couldn't. Surely he would understand that. My mind drifted a bit as the numbing effects of the water completely relaxed me. I shifted my thoughts to last night. Closing my eyes, I replayed every sexy scene in my mind. I could still feel his lips on my skin, his hands running up my thighs, his teeth on my skin.

Gah! Why was I so addicted to him? And his fucking fangs! Rather than get all hot and bothered, I forced myself to take several relaxing, deep breaths. It worked. I was still thinking of all the naughty things he did to me, but I was in an almost meditative state. He hovered above me, kissing and nipping my neck. He moved downward to my breasts and repeated his assault with his lips, tongue and teeth. I was tingling all over. He forged a path down my body to my thighs. Nuzzling into my thigh, he looked up at me, "Watch me, Sookie." as he slowly sunk his fangs in to my femoral artery. I awoke with a start. Crap! The last piece of the sun's orb was just on the horizon and there was still some light in the sky. So much for my plan to drape myself over him when he awoke. Shitfuckshit. I jumped out of the water, threw my robe on and popped back into the house.

I ended up in the middle of the living room. I must have surprised Eric who, looking around, fairly worried at my absence. At the loud "pop" of my arrival, he briefly went into a defensive stance, then dropped it once he realized it was me. Then his demeanor shifted a third time. To hunger. He had that fairy-crazed hunger look that I had so recently seen. Seriously? Fucking balls, this hot mess. Round two. Me and my yummy magic smell. If I would have had time, I would have laughed at just how ridiculous this was. His hands made claws and he gritted out, "Sookie" between huge fangs that had just snapped down.

I took a step back, "Eric. I will go upstairs to shower and you will go outside, until the smell dissipates and your head clears." His nostrils flared, the blue of his iris was completely black, he took a step forward. "Eric, snap out of it! Do we need another repeat of last night?!" I yelled in frustration. I felt a breeze. He was gone and I heard the door shut. I ran up the stairs as fast as my legs would carry me. I stuffed the robe into the deepest recesses of the closet and bolted into the shower. It was cold, since I didn't wait for the warm-up of water, though it heated up very quickly. I kept my mental eye on his position, in case cooling off didn't work. He was flying back and forth over the area, like aerial pacing, I gave a laugh. He did seem a little more in control this time. He never "checked out" on me like he had last night. He was in pounce mode, but he removed himself before could. Maybe it worked like an inoculation-the more he was around it, the more he could handle it. One could only hope.

I roughly washed my hair and skin, wanting to scrub the magic smell off of me, when I sensed his blip. Very close. As in, in the house. I quickly rinsed and flung the door of the shower open, preparing to grab a towel so I could at least have that tiny scrap of cover if I had to pop the eff out of there. The door opened and we both froze, eyeing each other. He spoke first "Stay. I am...okay. I think." He ran his eyes over my nakedness, clenched his fists at his side and swallowed. He was trembling.

"You think? If you aren't sure, why did you come back so quickly?" I made a reach for the towel, very slowly leaning over, keeping a wary eye on him for any sudden movement. He zipped over and grabbed it away before I could lay hands on it. His eyes raked up my naked body, he took a deep sniff of the air, "I am able to fight through it. Rather, I want to." I stepped back a little, guarding, trying to judge how tightly a reign he had on himself. "I think I am becoming accustomed to your...scent" The last word said very tightly.

"Okaaayyy...Now what?"

"I want to prove to you and myself I can best my baser instincts. May I dry you?"

I quickly tried to weigh whether or not that was wise. I was torn. First and foremost was my sense of survival. I took a deep breath. Secondly was my intense lust for him. I exhaled slowly. He was nude, a fact I had not allowed myself to notice until now. And he was fully erect and in all his delicious glory-muscles flexed, his hair mussed in the sexiest of ways. I took another deep breath of air. And he was making my body flush with the look in his eyes. I let the air out and stepped all the way from the tub. I held my hand up, halting him, still deciding. Third was my sense of curiosity. Was he really becoming used to it? Or was it only because he left and flew around and I showered? I sized him up; pupils dilated but not crazed, fangs down, but not huge and threatening like moments before, jaw and muscles tense but not poised for attack. Like a moth to a flame, I took one step closer, but he stayed still, awaiting permission. I nodded and he came closer. He took another whiff of the air around us and his eyes rolled back a bit but he maintained.

"You still okay?" Those ocean blue eyes burned into me so hot I felt them warm my skin and he nodded, again raking up and down my body with his gaze.

"Do not mistake my extreme desire for you right now Sookie. I have myself under control. This is not a magic fairy scent-induced attack. This is all me." Whether it was his words or my wet nakedness, I shivered and he closed the gap completely, wrapping me in the towel, and burying his face in my neck. I instinctively wrapped my legs around him like a vice. He groaned into me, his hands everywhere. He walked us to the bed and lay me down gently, trying to untangle himself from my legs but I yanked him down on top of me. I wanted to feel his weight on me. I needed it, that primal feeling to be engulfed by him, to feel the full weight of him on me. I heard and felt him growl and it shot right to my core. Tangling my hands in his hair, I pulled his head back to look at him and he grunted his pleasure. That one little grunt was my undoing. I was gone. I had checked out and been replaced with some cavewoman who was going to fuck and devour her mate. I kept my hands in his hair, exposing his neck, biting and suckling at it relentlessly. The low growl coming from him only egged me on even more. He returned the hair pulling, I tugged him into my neck.

In a low, gruff voice, "Fuck, yesss, Eric, bite me!"

"Not yet." It was my turn to growl and I bit at his neck again, trying to goad him into biting me.

His voice was strained, "My greedy little fairy, you are playing with fire!" I flipped us and sat astride him. I scratched my nails down his chest. I licked and bit a trail from his nipples up to his neck.

I bit his earlobe and hissed, "I like fire." He gripped my arms, trying to let me have my moment on top. I nipped at his lips, sucking his bottom one. I drove my tongue into his mouth. I licked at his fangs, then punctured my tongue on one. He moaned and immediately latched on to it. Victory. When his suction let up, I repunctured myself again, harder this time. I slid my hands down his stomach to grab a hold of his length and felt him shudder. Now it was time for me to play. I broke our kiss and nipped my way down to where my hand held him hostage, squeezing and sliding my hand up and down his thick shaft. Whereas last night I was placing shy little kisses, I was all business tonight. I teased his head with my tongue for a few seconds then, with no further notice, I swallowed him as far as I could. His hips shot up and a string of very sexy Norse words came from him, which only spurred me on. He held my head lightly, applying no pressure as I repeated this process several times, each time trying to take him that much further into my throat. I felt his head swell in the back of my throat. What I couldn't fit into my mouth, I squeezed and pumped with my hand, sliding my free hand under his balls to lightly massage. "Gods, Sookie!"

He pulled me up to him, gave me a hard kiss, then turned me so my face was right above his yummy cock and my hootch was right above his face, in the 69 position, as I had heard Claude call it.. I gasped both at him tossing me around unexpectedly but also at how vulnerable and shy I felt in this new position. I covered my embarrassment by doing the only thing I could think of-I immediately latched on and marveled at how well that angle allowed almost all of his length into my mouth and throat. He growled for the millionth time and buried his face in my folds, which made me cry out my pleasure with my mouth full. Oh my fuck. This was so raw and new- I felt pretty close to sensory overload. I was trying to devour him whole while he was latched on to me, running his tongue over my nub and through my folds and then delving it deep inside of me. I was whimpering, barely able to catch my breath, but refused to stop pleasuring him just so I could have my minute. Despite my efforts to keep up, I had to stop once he slid a finger inside and rubbed that spot inside that I never knew existed before last night. My mouth fell open, I rested my head onto his thigh and I arched my hips back onto his finger.

He seized upon my pause and had me flipped onto my back, sitting semi-upright against the pillows, so I had the best possible view in half a heartbeat. Before I could barely wrap my brain around my new position, he slid a second finger into me, teasing the spot again, and latched onto my clit. Grabbing his hair to hold him to me, he repeated all his actions in a perfectly-timed rhythm, making sure I watched him, until I was teetering on the edge of climax, then stopped. I was panting, trembling, so close. He ran his tongue over to my thigh, traced a feather light path around my clit with his fingers, then paused. For a few seconds that felt like an eternity. I held my breath and bit back a whine, begging him to finish. He looked at me with the most sexy, fuck me eyes I had ever and would ever see again. Just then he slid two fingers deep inside of me, pulsing in and out at vampire speed to rub my inside spot, while stroking my nub with his thumb. Then bit down into my femoral. I came unglued. I bucked my hips, screaming out his name, I saw stars. He immediately came up between my legs and slid into me as I was still riding the waves of my orgasm. I felt my magic come into me without me even summoning it. My skin lit up and my hands were giving off tiny sparks of light. Eric looked at me in shock and got his fairy crazed look that should have been a red flag, but I did not care in that moment. I placed my hands on his chest, feeling his skin absorb the sparks, which seemed to ignite him further. He began to slam himself into me, gripping my hips hard and moving me so fast I could barely make out the movements, and I heard someone screaming like a banshee. Later, I realized it was me. It felt like there were sparklers in my blood and my head filled with a light I usually only felt when I was gathering my magic to me. I was pulling at his hair and biting every piece of skin I could come in contact with. When he came, he exploded into me and he bit into my neck, and I bit down on the spot between his neck and his shoulder. I got blood this time so latched on and lapped it up, as I felt him do the same. He didn't take much, but I felt every delicious pull enhanced by his groans and grunts into me, making small hip thrusts while he rode out the last of his climax.

We were locked together, licking each others wounds, making no other attempts to move. After several minutes of silence, other than my ridiculously loud breathing, he pulled back to look at me. His strange expression, a mix of awe, concern and bliss made me giggle. He gave me a lopsided smile in return.

"Are you alright? I didn't hurt you?"

I shook my head and giggled again. "No, I'm fine. Very, very, deliciously fine." I leaned my head onto his chest. His chuckle was a low vibrating rumble. "Did you sense that? It felt like I was summoning my magic but I wasn't."

"I felt your magic inside of me. At first, I smelled that intoxicating fairy smell and thought I might revert back to my instincts and harm you. Then, when you touched me it was like you passed it into me; I felt it in my blood and it felt like my heart was beating." He tucked a piece of my hair behind my ear. "I have never experienced anything like it. You amaze me." He was looking at me in such wonder, I wasn't too sure how to handle it.

"Yeah, well..." I examined at my nails then pretended to buff them on my imaginary shirt "...you weren't too bad yourself." He laughed one of his big belly laughs, making it impossible not to giggle along with him.

I heard the ring of his cell phone downstairs, playing "Monster" by Lady Gaga and I looked at him with my eyebrows in my hairline.

"Pam's ringtone. She's up and wondering how soon we'll be there." He sighed.

I couldn't contain more laughter. "Who picked _that_ song?!"

"She did. Said it was about me and every time she hears it, she thinks of me. It's our song-her words, not mine." We laughed a bit more at her expense then reluctantly untangled ourselves.

"Back to reality."

"Sookie, anytime you want to come here, merely say the word. Or any of my homes. We will have to try them all out and then you can decide which you prefer for our date nights." He leered at me while he slid on some jeans.

"Mmm...that's tempting." I ran my fingers through his chest hair. "Hey!" I looked at him through slanted eyes, "You assume I'm always going to put out on our dates? I don't think so, Mister!" I pretended to be offended and crossed my arms in a huff, but was also testing him to see what his intentions were from here on out.

"Is that a challenge?" He grabbed me by my waist and pulled me to him.

I got a little more serious, but still kept my tone light. "No, it wasn't actually."

He brushed my cheek with his hand, "Sookie, I don't care if all we do is watch movies and braid each other's hair, like Pam said. I enjoy your company. More than I have of anyone in a very long time." He looked like he wanted to say more, but stopped. I wasn't sure why, but I got a little lump in my throat at his words.

"Good. I feel the same." We stood there for a minute, in comfortable silence, holding each other loosely about the waist.

"Shall we go?"

"Yes. I have a lot of questions and things we need to talk about. I wouldn't mind getting your opinion. Pam's too."

"Perfect. I agree, we need to talk about our blood exchange, but I'll save it for later. Will you be going naked?" He asked, hopeful.

"Ha! Wouldn't you like that!"

"Yes. I would." He said in a complete deadpan.

I just shook my head, but smiled like a fool, and hurriedly got dressed. I threw on the same outfit from last night and contemplated, then dismissed if this counted as "The Walk of Shame."


	20. Chapter 20

Ch 20

We decided Eric would just drop me off at my place, I would change and go to Fangtasia. He wanted to come in, but I gently tried to explain why he shouldn't. "You know, if you do that, we probably will get distracted and not make it in for another two hours. And, it would be best if I gave my cousins notice of your presence." I felt bad saying that, so hurriedly went on, "It's just that they like to pop in whenever and I know you've built up a really good tolerance to me, but I'm only half and they-"

He held his hands up, "Sookie, it's alright. You don't have to explain." He went around to open my door. Leaning me up against the car, he kissed me, at first gently, then deepened it. His hand cradled my head, and he teased me with his tongue, making stroking gestures I very fondly remembered elsewhere, not too long ago. I moaned a little and felt my thighs rub together of their own accord. He reluctantly broke the kiss and I immediately felt the absence. Squeezing my hips, he gave me a light peck on the nose, "Hurry" and scooted me in the direction of my door. He stayed where he was to watch me walk up and ensure I got into my door okay. Once inside, I went to the window to watch him leave. Before he got in the car, he sniffed the air and looked around the perimeter of the building and up in the sky. He had a serious look on his face. He looked up at me watching him and pulled out his phone. I heard mine ring in my purse.

"Missed me so soon?" I answered.

"There is an off smell around this place. I don't like it. I'll talk to you about it later. Are your doors and windows locked?"

I went back to the window to look down at him. He was in his car. "Yes."

"Okay. Don't let anyone other than your cousins in. When you're ready can you teleport to your car?"

I was about to mention popping straight to Fangtasia, then remembered the smell that came along with it. Not the best idea to waft that into a vampire bar. I did a mental scan, and other than the human brains I found the the complex, there were no others, supernatural or otherwise in the vicinity. I told him that. "But, yes, I'll just go right to the car."

"Call me when you get to the parking lot at the bar and I'll walk you in."

Jeez, what had him so spooked? But, he didn't seem the type to overreact so better to follow instruction and be fine, then get careless and regret it. "Okay, will do."

"And call me before if anything seems amiss."

We hung up and I watched him drive away, now I was a little nervous for his safety. I wonder what smelled "off". I didn't notice anything. But I had also floated here from the effects of his kiss. I placed a quick call to my cousins' place.

Claude picked up on the fourth ring. "Hey, Claude it's Sookie."

"Oh, hello, bitch tits. Calling to regale me with stories of your vampire's dead, delicious dick?"

"Claude!" I blushed beet red, which was his exact intent, the fuck.

"What? I know you put some fairy stank on it, don't act coy with me."

I hissed out, "We are not having this conversation! Listen, be serious for a second! Was there anyone from the family here today, other than one of us? Or any other Supe? Eric noticed an off smell when he dropped me home."

"It was probably the smell of your dirty-"

"Claude! Really? How old are you? This is serious. And if you recall, there is some shit going down, _back home_" I emphasized, "that means we should be on our guard." That shut him up.

"No, Sookie, no one has been here that I know of." His voice had the slightest hitch in it but I dismissed it as my imagination.

"You're sure? What about Grey or Diantha?" Both demons who were friends and could have paid a visit and maybe had a different smell to them.

"No. No one. I was at work all day and Claudine left when I got here. She didn't have any visitors or she would have said something."

"Okay. Well, just keep an eye out. Let me know if you think of anything or see someone." I fully expected him to sass me about being paranoid or tease me more about Eric, but he just agreed and we disconnected. I shook it off and headed for my bedroom. I slipped off last night's clothing and slipped on some new underthings and a different outfit. Gray pants, dressy casual, but tight enough to showcase my butt nicely. And a navy and white, vintage-y polka dot blouse that emphasized my waist. With red heels, just for Pam. Satisfied with my outfit, I went in and tried to make something of my hair that looked wrecked. The half ass shower, followed by no product or blow dryer, then a round of hair pulling sex had me calling uncle and just brushing it back into a high ponytail. I straightened it with an iron to at least look a little polished. I only needed some mascara since my cheeks and lips were rosy as could be, thank you, vintage vampire blood. Which reminded me-how many times had I had his blood now? I needed to remember to ask him. I thought about spritzing my favorite perfume on, then decided against it. I wanted to smell like Eric and sex. I laughed at myself. Was I being territorial and gloating? Nah. I knew he would love that and have to tease me about it. I found myself getting giddy and excited to see him again. Like an infatuated tweeny, I chided myself. Okay, ready to go. As an afterthought, I packed an overnight bag, telling myself it was just in case, but not an assumed thing that we would be spending the night together again.

I popped to my car and sent him a quick text. "I'm omw, but need to make quick stop."

In less than a minute, he shot back "Should I meet you?"

I stalled, waiting a few minutes before replying. "No I'll only be few seconds."

My phone rang. Surprise, it was Eric. "Lover" chills "Is your stop necessary?"

"Yes." I lied as I pulled into the parking lot of a large pet store that was right around the corner from the bar.

"Why do I not believe you?" My answer to his question was a laugh.

"Where are you? I will be right there." I was inside now.

"Eric, I am literally right around the corner." There was no harm in telling him where I was. "I stopped at Pet Smart."

"Are you getting a pet?" If we kept this up, I could be in and out before we finished our conversation. I arrived at the proper aisle. My eyes quickly scanned and found what I needed. "No. I just need some supplies."

"Do you have a pet?" Headed toward the cashier.

"No. Unless you count yourself."

His voice got low and husky, "As long as you caress, fondle and feed me, lover, I will be your pet" he purred. I marveled at the reaction his words had on my body. They had cute gift bags at the register which I added to my things.

"That sounds like an interesting proposition."

"You are in front of others and talking neutrally." I could hear him scheming.

"Yes."

"Shall I tell you how I can't wait till you get here so I can lay you on my desk and have my way with you."

"Oh? Okay." Jerk. It was getting warm.

"I have been having fantasies of taking you on my desk, since I met you, Sookie. I want to bend you over my desk and fuck you until you scream."

My heart was beating faster and I could hear my own harsh breaths resonate in the phone. I let out some kind of strangled sound in acknowledgment to him, while smiling awkwardly at the cashier. I couldn't pay and get out of there fast enough. I think I was almost running to my car. "But right before I let you orgasm, Sookie, I will flip you over and devour your sweet, delicious..." he stopped.

I stopped mid-stride, only a few feet from the car. Shit, now what? "Eric? Hello? Are you-?"

I was grabbed from behind and pulled up against a huge, hard frame. With a raging hard on. My fight or flight didn't even have time to kick in, when I heard in my ear, "...fairy pussy until you beg me for mercy." His erotic, naughty words instantly triggered intense heat and wetness between my legs, but I was also mad as hell he scared me.

I gave him an elbow to the gut for good measure, but not hard. "Shit, Eric! I about had a heart attack!"

He walked us the rest of the way to the car and lightly pushed me up against it, still behind me. His hands ran down to cup between my legs and I heard him give a huge sniff. "Mmmm, Sookie, your body tells me differently." I let him molest me for a bit, then dragged myself out of the sex induced haze.

"Ah, Eric. Let's get back to Fangtasia." He was nuzzling into my neck. "As much as I love your hair, I like it up like this, too. You have a very elegant neck."

I laughed and untangled myself. "Elegant, huh?" He looked like a puppy that had it's toy taken away.

"I'll drive, you fly?" He sighed, adjusted himself and nodded. I waited till I was inside the car to look very obviously down at his crotch and, with a pout "Aww, that looks uncomfortable. Looks like you need some help with that. I think I might know someone..." And I took off. I saw his smile in my rearview mirror as he rocketed upward. I felt like we were racing, but I knew he would win. I had two traffic lights yet and he had wide open sky. I pulled into the parking lot, tires squealing and threw it into park. He was already leaning against the back door, looking at his watch, feigning boredom. I laughed while I stuffed my items deep into my bag, and the Pet Smart bag under my seat.

Zipping up to assist me out of my car like a gentleman, "I win. I expect my prize and your" panty drenching eye fuck "_help,_ regarding our previous conversation, post haste."

"I had better check with my boss first."

He opened the door, "You let me worry about your boss."

Pam was in the hallway. "Finally! Your highness has arrived." She curtsied, then snickered as I gave her a look I hoped melted stone. As I walked passed her, she sniffed the air and followed behind me dreamily. I headed to Eric's office first, in case we had time to talk before opening. "Sookie, I love the shoes. And you smell like heaven. And Eric. My, my, you two have been busy. I want details. Or a re-enactment. Whichever."

I set my stuff down, trying to hide my blush. I mentally sighed. This was going to go on all night unless I let her get it out of her system so we could move on. But I kind of wanted to stick it to her a little. I stuck my chin out and sat down, taking a very ladylike pose. "Yes Pam, we have been busy. We've fucked like rabbits all night and tonight and probably will do so, here in the office a few times tonight, if you don't interrupt us a thousand times."

The "O" face they were both making, made any embarrassment instantly worth it. And then some. "Oh, and also, I didn't wash the scent of our fucking off me before I came here, so everyone could smell it and know I am his and vice versa." I tried to look bored. Both their mouths still agape, they looked back and forth at each other, then at me.

"Master, you've corrupted her." Pam did her best to dead pan, but her tell was the crinkle in her eyes. She was trying hard not to laugh. Eric burst out laughing. "That's it then- you've taken all my fun away." She huffed and did her best to look put out.

I couldn't hold out anymore, especially with Eric laughing. "Lover, it does things to me when you talk dirty."

"Me too," Pam quipped.

"Foof, you two! The apple doesn't fall far, does it?"

We bantered a bit more, then got down to business. First up was Fangtasia business, since it was all straight forward. I made a mental note I needed to get some things done before we left tonight. They talked about Longshadow's maker while I listened to my stomach rumble. I tried to remember when I last ate. Earlier in the day when I ate the prepared breakfast food. And it was now close to nine. Yeah, I need to eat to keep up my strength for sex, I sniggered to my self. Suddenly, I realized the room had fallen silent. They were both staring at me. I stared back, unsure what I missed.

Eric picked up the desk phone, dialed without even looking, barked out something in what I was pretty sure was Greek and hung up. "Sookie, you need to eat. Food will be here shortly."

Ah. "Thank you."

"You are welcome. I have been remiss in feeding you, despite how well you have been feeding me." We ogled each other across the desk.

"Ugh. If you two are quite done eyefucking, I would like to continue."

"Jealous." Eric said at the same time I said, "Party pooper."

Back to business, "Oh, so what of this odd scent you smelled near my place tonight? What did it smell like?"

"It smelled like the absence of a scent." I looked at him sideways, so he elaborated. "Everything has some kind of smell, but when there is a distinct lack of smell, especially outdoors, that is not normal. That was what I noticed at your flat tonight. When you were near, of course, I was entranced with your smell. But once you left, there was definitely no smell-no trees or vegetation, no night air, no garbage from nearby dumpsters, no exhaust from the cars, etcetera. A block from your place, everything returned back to normal, which made me believe someone specifically wiped all traces of smell from your area."

I absorbed that for a moment, as did Pam. She was the first to speak, "Witches."

That got our attention. "My friend Amelia is a witch. Truthfully, you probably know her better than I do." She fanged at me. "But still, she wouldn't need to sneak around anywhere near me or my cousins. If she wanted to be shady, she could just come visit, snoop or whatever and not have to hide her scent, since we wouldn't be alarmed by it."

He nodded in agreement. "Do you know how strong she is in her powers? What little I know of witches, it seems that a range that broad would take a lot of magic."

"I don't know too much about her that way." I looked to Pam, who shrugged. Guess they didn't talk about the small stuff when they hung out. "I know she dabbles a little, has placed wards for my cousins, but I think even those, she used another person to help. She's a really loud broadcaster-her thoughts, I mean. I think I would have heard if she meant me any harm."

"There's one way to settle this." Pam pulled out her phone and dialed. When Amelia answered, she gave no greeting in reply, just "Amelia. Would you be able to erase my presence, as in my scent from a large area, say a city block? Rid the area of any evidence I was there? It is Pam." I snorted.

She was a loud talker, so I could hear her response. "Uhh, no, I highly doubt it. That is too big an area for me. I might be able to pull off a small room, but that's about it. My powers aren't strong with that kind of stuff, Pam. I do better with protection wards and bindings-kind of like my specialty. I would really have to read up on that and probably get a few friends to help if you need that. Do you need me to-"

"Thank you. That is all." She hung up. Wow, phone skills abound. "She is ruled out."

"I will make a phone call or two to see if there is anything the local covens know-if anyone is new to the area or some rogues, practicing less than honorably. Sookie, we will have to be vigilant, until we can learn more. Be careful, when coming and going. In fact, maybe you should be staying with me, until we figure this out." Did he look hopeful?

"Uhm, we can talk that over later, maybe?" I didn't think that was a good idea, but I couldn't really say why right then. He nodded, his look unreadable.

Pam broke the brief, yet awkward silence. "So, any news on finding Alberik?"

Eric ran a frustrated hand through his hair, "No. We are waiting to hear from Niall. I need to speak to him and let him know that I am in no way in league with Breandan."

I didn't want to announce anything about the Fae portal just yet, especially in front of Pam, but I did want to know their thoughts on if I were to expose Eric to the Fae realm. "I really, really need to talk to Claudine. I want to find out what things are possible. I was thinking earlier today, I remember several years ago, a boy got lost deep in the forests near my family's home. His mother and aunt worked some magic, so that they could see him. They weren't able to pinpoint him exactly, but they could see around him enough to get an idea of landmarks and his father was able to find him with their description of the area. The women also could communicate with him, very briefly. I was wondering if we could do anything like that for Alberik." Eric's eyes lit up and I immediately felt bad for mentioning it, before talking to her, in case we couldn't do it. "I am not sure, Eric. It just crossed my mind today but I will find out. Do you have anything of his, any belongings?"

He thought for a minute, then shook his head. "Would my blood work? We share a maker."

I tapped my chin, "Actually, it may just. Let me call Claudine tonight and see what she thinks. Along a different vein, have you two heard any stories of vampires going to Fairy? Any old legends or myths?" Their eyes immediately got wide and they looked intrigued and a little scared.

"Our kind cannot go there, Sookie. We would immediately burn up. It is always daylight there. Not to mention, even if that did not happen, we would drain the first fairy we came across, leaving us drunk and helpless. We would be killed shortly after."

Hmm. I didn't want to say that there was a brief period of darkness there, again, not in front of Pam. It wasn't that I didn't trust her, per se, it was just a survival instinct not to discuss my kin's vulnerabilities. That and the fewer vampires that knew things about Fairy, the better. What if another vamp captured her and tortured her, wanting details about me or my kind? So, better left unsaid until absolutely necessary.

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was thinking about where Breandan would take Alberik. Somewhere you definitely couldn't get to him. You can't feel him, correct?" Curt nod. "The only way I have ever heard for species that share blood to lose that connection is when the other crosses to another realm."

His eyes registered understanding-he was following my line of thought. A brief look of suspicion crossed his face, but he neutralized it. I did not like that. "How do you know of blood connections in vampires?" I felt relieved. He was only suspicious because he didn't understand why I would know anything of their closely guarded secret.

I smiled gently, "For starters, I read a lot, A LOT of books. But also, as you probably already know, vampires are not the only ones that drink and share blood. Demons, dwarves, incubi/succubi and fairies-there are many. All species try to hide the fact that the blood so often ties them together, varying in strength and meaning. But at the very least, the two will usually always have a sense of awareness of each other, even just to sense their life force." He had his hands steepled together, pressed into his chin. He nodded his agreement and relaxed a little. "My point is, you don't feel your brother. But, you would have felt him, if he had finally died, right?" I gave him an apologetic look for my bluntness; he gave another curt nod. "A fairy has him and wants to hide him where you won't go. Sounds like they could be in Fairy, but if the legends are true, how is Alberik still alive?"


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: Hellooo my little kittens. Here's some action for you, though the first 2/3 is a little boring. Sorry about that. But they had to talk through some things first. And the last part makes up for it, I hope. I will try, try, try to get the next chapter up ASAP. I am so excited to get more done because the plot is swirling around my little pea brain trying to get out. The next story I do, I will have several chapters written ahead of time so it's not such a waiting game. But live and learn, right? Thanks for sticking around and leaving me love notes (i.e. reviews). I am going to try to get better about replying to your feedback, even if it's just once to tell you how I love you and we should have babies and move to Norway. OOh-speaking of-History Channel is coming out with a mini-series? docudrama? Called lol 'Vikings' on 3/3/13. SO that alone made me vow to watch it. Then I did some snooping and saw on the cast Gustaf Skarsgard. Guess who his brother is? Lol, I'm such a stalker. Whatev. So watch it, if you're in to that kind of thing. It looks goooood. Okays? So, on with the show. **

**P.S. I own none, except Alberik, I have no beta, I love you all, Viking Sheriff kisses.**

Ch. 21

Eric stood up and began to pace. "Why did I not think of this sooner?"

"Probably because you've always thought it was impossible to survive being in the Fae realm. To you, it wasn't an option. Like with most tales designed to distract or mislead, it has been spread throughout your world that you would die instantly. It's the same basis around the vampire myths that say you won't reflect in a mirror or you can be banished with holy water and crucifixes." He gave a curt nod.

He paced a few more times in silence, Pam and I giving him his space.

"I must get to him."

"Master, please tell me you would not risk going." The first genuine emotion I had ever seen Pam show and it was fear.

"I am duty bound, Pamela. I would do the same for you." He gave her a look of determination and she nodded in understanding, though her face still belied her trepidation. "That does not mean, however, I am going to charge in without having a full assessment of the situation and risks. We do not know how I would maintain cover, restrain myself from draining a fairy, how I would even get there..." They both turned their heads slowly to look at me. "Pam, leave us."

She did as she was told, though looked none too pleased about it and made sure to stomp her feet a little. When she was gone, he came to me, grabbed my hand and guided me from the chair I had been sitting in, to the couch. "Lover, we have many things to talk about."

I felt my ire kicking up, but bit my tongue to hear what he would say. If he thought I was just going to give up a free pass to Fairy and put my family and friends at risk, he had another thing coming.

"I know this puts you in a delicate position. Despite what you may be thinking, I am not asking for you to grant me access to your realm without advising your kin first. Niall is not someone I want to cross, unless there are no other options. I just need answers and a plan very soon. If we can reach my brother somehow by you and your cousin working a spell to locate him, great. If we can tell your grandfather and he is able to return him to me, fine. But I need this ball rolling and I need him to understand the urgency."

"That brings me to another question I was thinking about today." He stared at me expectantly. "I was thinking about popping in to see my great-grandfather." A mixture of looks flitted across his face in an instant-worry, relief, worry, suspicion, worry. "I was told by Claudine that he did not want me to come there right now, under any circumstances. So, if I went, you would be the only one here who knew. And, I am pretty sure my powers of teleportation aren't strong enough to get me to there. I would need my cousins powers, as well. There is a portal I know of which will allow me to enter without any additional magic. I think I should go. If we can't find him the other way, I mean."

"Why would he not want you there, especially given the nature of the mission he sent you on with me. If you needed to escape, you would need to go home."

"Breandan has been on the warpath from what Claudine tells me. But that's all she will tell me. I don't know if that means they are actively waging war, or if he is causing chaos. I have heard in past wars, the Water Fae, in order to draw us out, have snuck into the villages, killing women and female children. It is killing me not to know and not to be able to help." I wrung my hands and swallowed the lump in my throat.

His hands gently untangled mine and held them in his own huge ones, but his eyes were stern. "Sookie, while I appreciate your efforts to help me, and can definitely understand your desire to defend your people, I can't have you put yourself in harm's way. I would be very...upset if something were to happen to you because of me. Not to mention, if Niall were to find out you returned home against his wishes in order to help me-"

I interrupted, "Eric, believe me when I say, he will have no problem believing I went against your wishes and came on my own." He gave me a smirk. "I don't mind telling you a few concerns, if I were to go back, though." He nodded for me to continue. "I worry I won't be able to come back. If there is trouble and my family needs me, there is no way I can return. Not until the threat is gone. I don't know how long that would be. Would you be okay with that?"

His eyes twinkled at me, knowingly. "Why, Sookie. Are we having the relationship talk? So soon?" He teased me.

"Says the man who suggested I practically move in with him 'to keep me safe'!" I imitated him. "But, I will be woman enough to admit it, if that's what you're teasing me about." I stuck my chin out a little. "We have reached a point where I would like to explore what we have further, and you're full of shit if you imply you don't feel the same."

He threw his head back and laughed. "Woman, I have never met someone such as you in all my years! I simultaneously want to shake and kiss you for your bullheadedness. It seems we are very much alike. In fact, in a lot of ways, you seem like a female counterpart to me. I have a feeling we will be butting heads very often. But in response, no I will not deny I want to know you more in every way. I have waited a thousand years to meet someone like you, I am not giving that up without a fight. And yes, I will be here waiting for you." He kissed my palm and got serious again. "I only ask one favor: that you get word to me as often as you can that you are well." I agreed, though I wasn't sure how that would work. "Which leads me to another line of conversation. Earlier you spoke of blood bonds and you sound like you knew of them and how they worked, roughly." I nodded, wondering where he was going. "You have had my blood twice now, I should be able to feel you. I feel you when you are taking it and for a short time after, but that's it. In fact, I wanted to warn you before the second time you took it that, for us, three times creates a permanent bond. I wasn't anticipating you biting me the second time, my little fairy vampire." He smiled devilishly at me and I blushed to beet red.

"I-uhm, guess I get a little wild during." He still had a shit eating grin. "Oh hush with that! A big part of it is because I know how much it turns you on-" The smile got even bigger. Damn, I was making it worse. "Gah! You!"

Another huge belly laugh and he hugged me, "Lover, do not be embarrassed of what happens between us. As I said, we are similar in many ways. I am beyond pleased you would take my blood, regardless of the reason. But I do not understand why I cannot sense you after two exchanges. "

"I don't know...maybe because of my fairyness? I'm taking a shot in the dark here. But, regardless, I'm glad you told me about the third exchange before we did it."

A glimmer of something flashed across his features. "Yes. I would not have allowed it until I told you."

"So, I have to take it directly from you then? Because you did put some on my leg wound from Long Shadow's claws." "Yes, to be part of the bond process it must be directly ingested Otherwise, every time we healed our puncture marks on a human, we would be at risk of a bond if it was three times."

"True. Guess I won't take it again till we know for sure. I will see if anyone in the family knows. I have quite a few questions, actually. I also wanted to know what happened to my scent block. It was gone once you did heal my leg with your blood or shortly after. Is that significant?" I left out the part about wanting to know why I was so freakishly drawn to him and his fangs.

"Thats a good point. Yes you need some answers. Hopefully they have them."

We sat in silence for a bit."I want to call Claudine. I guess talk of me going back is moot, if we are able to find him without it."

"Please do. Would you like me to leave?"

"No! No." I said sheepishly. I suddenly felt a little clingy. I might be leaving soon and wasn't sure when I would be seeing him. He must have understood as he gave my waist a reassuring squeeze. I pulled my phone from my purse then sat on his lap. I knew he would hear everything she said, but there was nothing I needed to hide from him. I had to remember, however, not to let on my possible visit to Fae to my cousin. We exchanged pleasantries for a bit, then asked me juicy details about my date last night to which I refused to answer. Eric enjoyed my blush and squirming, though. She surprised me by saying "Alright Cuz, whats the real reason for the call. You've got something on your mind."

"Can you, or we collectively, work any magic to find someone who is lost?"

"Lost of their own volition? Or missing due to the ill will of another?"

"Uhm does it matter?"

"Yes. Intent is everything in magic, Sookie, you know that."

"So the answer to that question determines whether or not it can be done?"

"Not if it can be done, just how."

"Ah." Jesus, just answer my question normally! Grr...fairies!

"Is this...being" Eric raised his eyebrow "in this realm or a different one?"

"I don't know."

"That will determine if we can successfully find them then. Do you have something that belongs to them?"

"Yes." I figured I would have to let her in on Eric's secret but not over the phone, though I had a feeling she suspected.

"Is this the someone Eric cares about that is being threatened by Breandan?"

He looked at me sharply but didn't look mad that she knew. "Yes."

"Well, then I want to warn you, he may have some powerful magic around them to block us from doing any type of locator magic. Breandan is no fool and he's very powerful. We will try it, but if it doesn't work, that may be why. I want to help Eric. Then he will be on our side and the sooner the better. I believe Breandan is planning something big, very soon."

"Why, whats happening, is everything okay?" I bombarded her with questions.

"Take a breath killer, everyone back home is okay. But that's all I am allowed to tell you."

"Arrggghhhh"! I wanted to throw the phone in frustration. Eric rubbed my back which did helped a little. I took several calming breaths. It struck me just then that Eric was one of the few people that could calm me. Just wanting off the phone quickly, I said I would be home shortly, to do this "seeing spell" as she called it and we said goodbye. My goodbye was very terse and she knew it, but let me be. As soon as we disconnected, I hopped up and started ranting and pacing. "So they've entrusted me to come here and see what you're up to, a fairy in a vampire's den. But when it comes to whats going on right now, when everyone I care about back home is in danger, they wont tell me shit." I went on for several minutes, ranting and Eric stay silent, letting me have my moment. I ran out of steam and felt a little foolish, so plopped down on the couch. "Sorry for the tantrum. Not very mature and not at all useful, I know."

"Your frustration is warranted. I have been known to break furniture, rip up trees and throw cars in my tirades." I pictured that for a minute.

"Sooo, I guess I'll run home." A thought occurred to me, "I wonder if Claudine could mask her scent like Niall did for me, then you could be there to watch. In case Alberik is being kept somewhere you recognize and we don't. Assuming this works. I would hate for it to be a success, then it's useless because we don't know where he is." I was mostly thinking out loud. "Though I'm not sure she'd be willing. She is a full blood, so the risk would be much greater, her scent stronger, not to mention once we actually conjure the magic..."

"What if you were to silver me?"

I gasped at the thought, "What?! No! I would rather not do it with you there, if it meant that!" He came over to me once more and took my cheek in his palm.

"Sookie, I have endured much torture in my life and much more that a few silver chains for a few minutes. My brother is probably enduring much worse than that as we speak" his eyes got dark. "If your cousin is willing, I am willing. I will heal."

My heart balked, but my mind ran through all the possibilities. "We would have to do it somewhere Claudine felt safe, not here or anywhere surrounded by vampires. I will control the silver. I'm not sure why, but I don't want anyone else controlling that."

He smirked at me, "Possessive are we, my little fairy?" He leaned in closer to me, but I dodged him with a smile and stood up. "Don't get us started please! Maybe I am. But I don't trust them to act with everyone's, i.e. your, interests at heart. And if I'm being honest, their opinion of you is jaded with fear and eons of distrust. They could react instinctively to something and if it were while you were vulnerable, it could...be bad."

He looked at me appraisingly, "Lover your sharp mind never ceases to amaze me. You see all angles and think fairly."

"I try. Okay, let me run this by her in person. I will go there, then call you with the answer, is that fair?"

"Very." He took my by the waist and pulled me in closer. "Have I said how much I appreciate everything you have and will do?"

"Not lately." I crooned as he nuzzled into my neck. I was enveloped by his intoxicating scent. Is this what my scent did to him? I held his head into me and took a deep inhale.

"Do I smell good?"

"Mmm...yes. Like earth and wood and the sea."

He pulled back and looked at me a little strangely. "That's odd."

"What, that you smell like those things?"

"No, that you can not only smell them, but distinguish them. Tell me, have you noticed it only since you've had my blood?"

"Nooo, I noticed the first night I met you." He took that in and looked like he filed it away for further thought. "Okay, well, I need to get a move on." He gave me a kiss that knocked my socks off, it took everything I had to walk away, to not wrap my legs around him and have sex there in his office, like I promised Pam.

On my way out, I saw Pam wasn't in her office, so slipped her present from my bag onto her desk. I didn't bother filling out the little card attached to the bag. She would know who it was from.

* * *

I perused the room to think of any last minute precautions. Eric was restrained with silver at his ankles and wrists, using my silver chains, to a chair in my living room. They were the thinnest ones I could find, but the smell of burning flesh still filled the room. And that was even with a piece of fabric padding the area between the chains and his skin. Eric tried to look as though it wasn't hurting but I knew it was. The chains I had on him could be called back to me with only a thought, releasing him instantly if need be. Unknown to my cousins, I had removed everything wooden from the house that could be quickly used as a stake. Yep, if my vampire was going to be completely vulnerable, there was no fucking way any harm, past the silver, would come to him.

I had convinced Claudine to do it at my place. She had originally wanted to do it at the strip club, but I refused. Too many unknown things or people could have access to the area. Claude and Claudine were here, having invoked a masking agent, theirs in the form of a liquid Claudine conjured and they drank it quickly before they even stepped foot into my place. It had taken heavy persuasion to get Claude here. It was only when he was repeatedly reminded this was to help our family and get Eric on our side by freeing him from Breandan's blackmail.

Eric quickly filled them in on the whole story of his brother and I saw Claudine's demeanor towards him soften, though Claude remained unmoved, shocker. "Okay, let's get going. We've got about 5 hours before dawn and I'll not have Eric in silver all night." They raised their eyebrows at my bossy tone. I took the small vial of Eric's blood he had given me and poured it into a small shallow bowl. My two cousins' look of disgust at it didn't not escape me or Eric and our eyes met. He looked weak but tried to reassure me. "I am okay, Sookie." I walked to him and kissed him softly on the lips, and I heard my cousins gasp. I shot them a look daring them to say a word. Claude opened his mouth, but Claudine grabbed his hand and he shut it.

I sat down and placed the blood in the middle of the triangle we formed. Claudine handed me a vial wrapped in Fae fabric-it had the shimmery gauzy look of our realm. "We will chant and summon our magic Sookie. When you see the light enter our triad and begin to form a sphere, add the potion to his blood. As any picture or sights appear, keep your eyes open and memorize every single thing you see in the vision. You may be able to see more than anyone, since the blood we are using to summon Alberik is also in you." How the eff did she know that? I didn't tell her. "Your vampire might not be able to look into such a bright light as ours, or he may not be able to see anything within it. We will keep chanting while you describe what you see to all of us. Also, if Breandan has blocked us from finding ALberik, we will see nothing, so prepare yourselves for that, just in case. Got it?"

"Yep." We grabbed hands and formed our link. We all called our magic out, my cousins had their eyes closed, but I would not so I could keep an eye on Eric. The second I felt, then saw the enchantment swirl up through us, I saw him strain against his chains.

"Undomiel ely siviar êl silah, undomiel ely Sookie, undomiel ely Erîk, undomiel ely Alberîk. Palchelbel Sookie, pachelbel Erîk, pachelbel Alberîk. Crostacht. Muintire. Gaire cabhairrn. Our magic sphere lit up like the sun and swirled, waiting for it's next command. "Sookie, nohren!" I broke my hands from our link, but placed their hands together, so now only they were linked. I took the fairy bottle and poured several drops into the blood. A small burst of white light exploded atop the mixture, then engulfed me. My body absorbed the light and I felt it coarse through me, then mute out. Before I could register that, I heard Eric cry out. In alarm, I quickly looked at him, ready to stop what we were doing if need be. He had stopped straining at his chains. He looked to be in sheer ecstasy. A pulse of light lit him up, the same color as mine had just done, then quickly faded out. When it was completely gone, his eyes opened and he looked gob smacked.

Claudine and Claude were still chanting, eyes closed. "Sookie." Eric rasped, gesturing toward the ball of magic now above all of our heads. A picture was taking shape. There was a man, no a vampire-though his fangs weren't down, completely wrapped in chains, strapped to what looked like a silver chair, with silver manacles on his wrists and ankles. He had gashes, cuts on every visible inch of his body, his eyes were open, but I couldn't tell what color they were, they were so devoid of any sign of life. I suddenly realized his fangs weren't down, because there were gaping holes where they should have been. Someone had removed them. I felt instantly sick. His hair, what wasn't caked in blood, looked blonde-ish and wavy. He was pale, actually, more of a gray color. If he hadn't have made one small movement, I might have thought him finally dead.

"Alberik! Sookie that is him!" Eric began to instantly growl and struggle at his chains, not from fairy lust but in fury. "Eric, ehnio idhû." He calmed. I wanted to bring Alberik here, I knew in that moment, though I wasn't too sure I could, but I was going to try. I suddenly felt a huge rush of magic-not mine, but a foreign magic come over me, more like, took ahold of me. I was no longer in control. I stood up, closing my eyes, palms upward, "O mŏr dreil Alberik! O mŏr anirohn Alberik! O mŏr Muintire, Alberik!" Claudine's eyes popped open, "Sookie, no!" I levitated a few inches off the ground but continued my chant. I felt the magic shoot out every pore on my body in an explosion and I fell backwards on to my butt.

It was suddenly very cold. I opened my eyes and I couldn't see very well. Wait, I could see fine, it's just that it was dark. And cold. And it smelled weird. And I heard growling. I tried to shake off the thick fog in my brain. "Eric?"

I heard a gasp not far away. In a thick Germanic accent "Eric? You know of my brother? He has sent you?"

My eyes adjusted and I saw in front of me, a mere few feet away, Alberik. And we weren't in my living room.

**A/N2: I will post the translation on the next chap, running late for a family function and wanted to get this posted.**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Jaysus! I have been sweating this chap for realz. I have edited and gone through it a thousand, okay maybe ten, times. I think I got it as close to what I want as possible. This chapter originally came out as literal Sookie thoughts,**** instead of first-person narrative that is much more readable**. An example, the first couple sentences, when she's taking her surroundings in, came out like this:"Dark, smell is familiar, can't identify, no decor, Alberik mumbling, must quiet him, cannot alert anyone." And that pattern continued on (or wanted to, but I wouldn't let it) through the whole scene. It reminded me of when tv/movies make the camera pov of the person. You watch "through thei eyes" as they take in/process visuals with no or very few words. Like, "lamp, doorway-locked, one window, boarded up." Does that make sense? Anyhoo-I wasn't sure I could pull it off to where it made sense to read, so just changed it and I think that's throwing me off, because it's not quite how I picture her in the situation. But this way is okay too, it's just fighting me a little. So, enjoy and I'll hustle my buns to get the next one out. As per usual-I own nada, except Alberik and I have no beta, so if I fudged, do forgive. Love peace and pickle smooches to you all. I hit 400 reviews, so whoopee! ***confetti, balloons, dog dressed as a clown*** Thanks so much, you guys rock. Even though you boss me to hurry up with my updates, I secretly like it. Special thanks to sluggysmom for her support through my doggy crisis, and all is now well. I'll see if I can post a picture of her to my profile. My dog, not sluggysmom lol.

Ch 22

As quickly as I possibly could, I took in every scrap of my surroundings. Dark, smells familiar but couldn't yet identify it, no decor to speak of other than the chair Alberik was in. He was mumbling incoherently in German about Eric and fairies torturing him and the light.

Staying where I was, I barely whispered, "Alberik, my name is Sookie. I am here to help. I belong to Eric and we are trying to get you out of here. Please stop talking so you do not alert anyone nearby." I repeated it in German, just to be safe. He quieted. I continued assessing the situation, not wanting to move in case that attracted someone as well. No windows, there was a large square piece of furniture across the room I hadn't seen at first glance but now that my eyes adjusted- dammit what was the smell? Stale air, blood, burnt flesh and-? It was going to make me nuts.

On the far side of the room, was a large...I willed myself to see it without moving an inch or even squinting...It was a wooden cabinet. It looked like an armory cabinet and there were large, identical markings on each of the doors. It was really hard to discern a color in this light. I closed my eyes, resting them for a second from strain, then opened them again. The marking was clearer now; all the blood left my face, I felt my heart rate speed up and my stomach drop to my feet. Nononono...then the familiarity of the smell hit me. My flux in emotions must have shifted something in me. My magic summoned all around me of it's own accord as rage filled me like bile in my throat. My body lit up, the way it had before I left Eric and my cousins.

Rather than waste another minute in this wretched place, I immediately called my sword to my side. My fairy sword. Made of iron. I allowed myself the hopefully, small movement of gripping the handle, enough to console me slightly. I felt better having it with me. There was only one reason I would be able to call that sword, in particular, to me here now. Deep breath, don't think about that now. Let's think about getting these chains off Alberik. I was going to have to start moving about, at some point, lets just get this over with. I took a step toward him and his eyes lifted, met mine widened in surprise at my glow. He narrowed them, then quickly darted his gaze to my left.

"Oh, no you don't!" I heard directly behind me and a cloth bag halfway landed on my head and I was pushed forward in an attempt to get me on my knees. Too little too late. Alberik had warned me a split second sooner than my attacker, so it was an awkward failure. The bag went only half my head, I stumbled forward, I balanced then steadied myself on my knees. While the idiot behind me scrambled trying to grab my free left arm to subdue me, I had already unsheathed my sword and swung 'round, aiming for the money shot. I must have found a suitable mark as my hands were released and I heard my enemy screech in pain, then felt him fall forward, almost on top of me, but I dodged and he slumped onto his belly on the floor, minus an arm.

Ripping the bag off, I put one foot on his lower back, and pressed my sword into the upper quadrant, where his heart would be. I pressed hard, letting him know I would run him through if I needed to. I could smell more burnt flesh, different from Alberik's, sweeter, that meant I had injured a fairy. I looked at his arm, discarded a few feet away and it was burning, as was the severed part still attached to the body. His blood curdling screams were annoying me. I grabbed his hair and wrenched his head back, while pushing in a little more with the sword. "Oh,no YOU don't!" Then I gasped and almost fell backwards.

"Preston! You fucking traitor!" Once I recovered, I almost pushed my sword in and finished him right then and there but I heard shouting and footsteps. Someone was coming and there was no way to know if they were friend or foe and I didn't think I would trust anyone anymore at this point anyway. There was no time to question or torture him slowly, as I so desperately wanted. I settled for giving him a bone deep gash on his leg to ensure he couldn't get up. While he screamed and writhed in agony, I spat at him "Enjoy the iron eating it's way through your flesh, you repulsive, pathetic excuse for a man and fairy. I will finish you, have no doubt."

I sheathed my sword and ran to Alberik, who now eyed me in lust and terror but was too weak to do anything. I quickly made as much of the large link chain disappear as I could, that was wrapped around his neck and torso. I climbed onto his lap, praying he wouldn't gnaw at me with his human teeth, wrapped my arms around his chest and summoned my magic with every fiber of my being. I tried desperately to recall that foreign energy I had felt before I teleported here. I pictured Eric and how desperately I needed to get back to him. I thought of how weak Alberik was, he looked like he might not make it even a few more days. I felt it swirl and whirlwind around us, then, just as before, rush over me and absorb into me from all sides. Wrapping my legs around one of his, as added measure I couldn't leave without him. Or so I I hoped.

"O mŏr dreil Eric, O mŏr anirohn Eric! O mŏr Muintire, Eric!" I heard a door being battered, then break into pieces, more shouting and the sound of metal and swords, but we were gone. This time the process was painful. There was a huge "SHLOP" sound as we left. It felt like we were being stretched through a never-ending wormhole between two worlds. I could see parts of the darkly shadowed room we just left but also the bright light of my living room. We were both screaming. I squeezed my eyes shut, and let my magic flow through me and into Alberik, hoping to sooth him. I felt like I was going to pass out. Mentally, I repeated "O mŏr Muintire, Eric!" and tried to give us one last push, before blackness took me.

I woke to feeling like every bone in my body was broken and I couldn't breathe from the immense pressure on my chest. I tore my eyes open, trying not to panic. I saw Eric, still chained as I had left him. Oh, thank you! We made it. His mouth was moving but I couldn't hear him-my ears were ringing. I tried turning my head but I couldn't, something was weighing down on me, preventing it. Interrupting him "Eric, I can't hear anything you're saying, and I can't move." I tried to take small breaths, as much as I was able, and use my peripheral vision. I smelled burnt flesh and dried blood, neither of which were Eric's, so that was good. I strained my eyes as far to the left as I could, just then a piece of medium blonde, blood soaked hair fell across my face. Alberik!

He was unconscious, planted on top of me! Okay, I could deal with that. At least we both made it back and weren't melted together, like some episode of The X-Files. The ringing in my ears died down somewhat. I checked all my limbs, though they were pinned and hurt like fuck, they seemed to all be able to move. I calmed myself and tried to shimmy and slither out from under the dead weight of the vampire above me. I had freed a leg when suddenly the weight was gone. I gasped and looked up, completely surprised at the sudden release of pressure on my chest.

Alberik was now seated in the chair he'd been in when we left Fairy. Shit, I brought the chair, too? If I had the energy, I would have laughed. I looked past him. Claude had lifted him and now he was looking repulsed, trying to put as much space between himself and the vampire. I lifted myself up and rest back on my elbows. "Gee, thanks, Cousin, think you can wait a little longer to help next time, till I am completely crushed?"

"Be glad I helped at all. This is a vampire mess and you have put us all in danger by putting us smack in the middle of it!" He hissed.

I raised myself up, being re-energized by anger. "Excuse me? You _are_ fucking joking, right? I'm not sure if you're just joining in on our little soap opera, here, _Cousin_, but" I stalked over to him and poked my finger into his chest "do _NOT_ forget, I was sent here by our _grandfather_! Alberik was abducted by Breandan, while he blackmailed Eric in order to use him in the fight against us. All to help _OUR KIN_ avoid or win this stupid 'war' with him and his crazed factions. So that, to me,_ dear Cousin_ sounds like you have an issue to take up with the Council and Grandfather. I'll be sure to let them know of how inconvenienced you've been." He looked nervously down at the sword on my hip, then his mouth fell open in shock.

I heard a telltale pop and I swung around, ready for a fight, not knowing if someone had followed me from the torture room. "Sookie!" Claudine dropped the huge book she had in her hands and ran to me, hugging me tightly-too tight given how much my body hurt.

I squeaked "Claudine, ow, I'm fine." Over her shoulder I saw Eric, quiet this whole time, staring between me and his brother, concern for both of us etched in his face. I broke out of her grip and her eyes were immediately drawn to the sword. She let her mouth fall agape. I waived my hand at her to get her attention. "Claudine, yes, I have my sword. We need to talk about everything that happened. There is a serious traitor in our ranks and probably even worse than that, but I want to get Eric out of the chains and let him take his brother somewhere safe. Can you two pop somewhere sort of far-ish, so I can unchain these guys and then I'll call you ASAP?" She nodded, still speechless, her eyes now sad. "Give me thirty minutes or less. Wait-will you walk out of here, then pop. There's a whole lot of fairy and magic stinking up the place about now-"

Eric finally spoke, interrupting me, "Sookie, I am under control, if that is what you mean. And I can control my brother." I believed him. All this magic and two full-blooded fairies flitting in and out, and he looked completely normal. Hm.

"Okay. So, sound like a plan?" I looked back expectantly at Claudine, she nodded, a little worried but gestured for Claude to come with her. She reached for his hand and he went to her, giving me a wide berth, but not escaping without a scathing look before they popped out.

"Whew." I felt like I could take a breather. I ran over to Eric and threw myself into his arms, while calling the silver off him. It disappeared in an instant and he wrapped his arms around me.

"Gods, Sookie! I thought I'd lost you!" He ran his hands all over me, as if to ensure I was real. "Are you unhurt?" I nodded, feeling a stinging behind my eyes, not able to talk just then. I was happy to be back in his arms, happy that he felt the same, sad at the betrayal I felt by my own people. "You were so brave, Sookie. Your grandfather was right, at least about one thing: you are a warrior. And your magic is great." He was cupping my face between his big hands and was leaning in for a kiss when, behind us, we heard a low moan.

I gasped, "I need to unchain him! I got some of them off, but didn't have time to get them all."I stood up. And turned to tend to poor Alberik.

"I know." My head whipped around to look at Eric. He was rubbing his wrists and flexing his ankles where the silver had been and he looked back at me, knowingly. "I know, Sookie. I saw it all."

My brows furrowed together. How had he seen it?

"I swear to you, I will tell you all I saw, later. As you will tell me." I nodded in agreement and made towards Alberik again.

"Do not unchain him yet. I am sorry for his pain but I don't want to have to kill him for attacking you, now that we just got him back." He gave me a crooked smile. "I will fly him to Fangtasia for blood first, then one of my homes to heal." He took a step and kissed me, hard and passionate.

He made a move to step past me, but I grabbed his hand. "You need to heal before you fly yourself and your brother into the side of a building. You've been chained in silver for some time, now and though I know you will deny it, I know it took it's toll."

"Absolutely not! I will be fine. I have withstood much worse torture than that and flown under much more dire circumstances! You have used too much magic tonight and you yourself look weak. No way."

"That's great but the difference here is that I don't have to fly myself, plus one, anywhere. And as soon as my cousins return, I can regenerate my magic and strength. I am offering it to you to help you help your brother." He had such a steely-eyed look, I knew I wasn't going to get my way, unless "...maybe I need you to take it. I need the closeness we both feel when you do." I said shyly, "Just a little."

He immediately caved. I stifled any feeling of victory, because I really did want him to have his strength. For all we knew, an army of Water Fairies could show up and attack, having put some kind of tracking device on Alberik, and I told him just that. "Again, I am impressed with your foresight. Fine." He sighed, exaggeratedly, though with a smile on his face.

"Good because, I was just going to make a wound" I gestured to my wrist "and if you didn't take it, I was going to offer it to Alberik-"

He growled, grabbed my hand and kissed my wrist, roughly. "Never. You will always only be mine now, Sookie."

How could I not feel a thrill at that? I waggled my eyebrows at him, "I'm okay with that."

The other vampire in question made more noises, indicating he was rousing a little more. I looked over. He was growling and his eyes were burning a hole into me. I gasped, taken aback-they looked so much like Eric's! His silver burns, where I had removed the chains had healed up-not completely, but they were closed. He looked less gray. He obviously needed more blood. From the look on his face, he wanted mine. I had seen that look before-nostrils flared, pupils dilated not too long ago from my own vampire when he caught scent of the faeness.

He observed me with Eric and seemed to try to shake himself clear of his fog but the instinct was too strong and he growled much more intensely, and pulled at the restraints on his wrists. I inwardly cringed as I saw the wrist where his hand had been cut off. It had tried to grow back, but didn't get very far. I swallowed back my rage at who had been responsible for this. He had done nothing to deserve this, other than his association with Eric.

"Brother, you will curb your instinct now. I know you are injured but this woman is mine." I looked back to my vampire. He was still holding my wrist to his mouth, rubbing his lips back and forth across my veins. I nodded my permission for him to bite me there, both of us preferring him to bite my neck, but knowing what kind of trouble that would start if he did. He bit, as gently as possible and it did hurt a little, but the second he drew blood from the wound, the pain was replaced with pleasure. We kept our eyes locked on each other as he fed. He was making low moans against my skin as he nursed the wound and I fought the warmth I felt between my legs. Thankfully, Alberik's growling and straining against his restraints grew stronger, making Eric stop. He reluctantly sealed the wounds and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. He gave me that knowing, devilish smile that made me want to slap him then sex him up. "Did you take enough?"

He closed his eyes and gently kissed my wrist one last time, then gently placed it at my side. "Mmm...perfect." He was still doing The Look, "Ugh, you. Stop that. You do look pinker though." He laughed at that.

"Okay, let's do this. I think I can just remove the chains off him in a poof, as long as you can keep him from attacking me." I edged closer and he got even more crazed-it was making me a little nervous. This wasn't Eric, after all and he had been tortured and starved for weeks.

"Poof?"

"Call them off, wave them away, magic, whatever." I shrugged.

"Yes, I saw you do that for him earlier. I am impressed. I thought you only had some magic, Sookie. Your words, by the way, not mine."

"I do only have some. I seem better dealing with inanimate objects-calling things to me, making them go away, spells on an item. I have a much harder time with people, hence needing my cousins to teleport far, or so I thought until tonight. Okay, ready?"

He walked to Alberik and grabbed both arms. "As soon as you remove them, I am getting us out fast. You will come to me tonight?"

"I will deal with my cousins and call you immediately. It may be a short talk with them, I'm confused, hurt and feeling short-tempered with my family as of now." He gave me a tender, understanding look and I kissed his cheek, then took several steps back, as far from them as I could get and still be in the same room. "Okay, here goes." I whisked my hand in the air in a horizontal swiping motion. The chains were gone and the vampires zipped off in a blur.

I sighed, got myself a water and gulped it back, picking up the phone to call my cousins. It only rang her number once. Immediately there was a pop and they were right there in my living room, as though they had never left, just stayed paused in some limbo land.

I was pacing before their forms even solidified. Claudine opened her mouth but I held up my hand. "So, who all was in on this?! Everyone? Am I the only one that didn't know? And if the whole fucking family is on it, is there even a threat of war between the Sky and Water Fae, or has this all been a huge ruse?"

"Sookie, slow down! What are you talking about? None of what you're asking makes sense. Where did you go and what did you see?" She looked the picture of innocence, concern and confusion. To her credit, she really seemed to have no clue and I got no indication when I read her. Claude, however, looked...less so. I stared at him, blinking a few times, trying to read him but he was blocking me hard.

"You saw what happened. I tried to bring Alberik here, but ended up going to him. It took me a second to figure out where I was. But I did, much to my dismay. Preston was there, obviously fully aware the vampire was being held captive, if not actively involved in it. He tried to capture me, as well."

"Preston?! He couldn't have been involved! He isn't bright and seems...off, but I can't imagine-Wait, where is 'there'?"

"I was somewhere on the grounds of The Palace."


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: 'Ello, govnah. So...this may be a boring chappy but kinda had to do it to move on. The next one should have some more E/S interaction and hopefully a lemony lemon, if their time allows. Quick detail on fairy communication between realms in MY world. There is none, other than popping back and forth. The whole phone messaging service thing in the books was too much for me to deal with in my story because there is a lot more interaction between all the fairies in between both worlds, and it gets all awkward. So, whatevs. Just slightly OT, but I've been reading a lot of stuff on my FB Eric Lover, Sookieverse, etc. fan pages these "How do you think the last book will end, HEA, etc?" questions. I thought CH said flat out, from the beginning, there will be no HEA for E/S. The end. Am I missing something, or am I over thinking it? Are the questions, just asking a fantasy what-if, fun scenario, or what? Because I have several book related pages I follow and they're all asking that same question in preparation for DEA. I had resigned myself to bitter disappointment, but if there's a spark of hope...*shiver. Anyone know? I should probably go ask over at Sookieverse, but it's too easy to lose five hours of time when I hop on there lol. And I'm trying not to get distracted so I can work on the story. Okay buddies, as usual, I love you all for your reviews and hilarious comments and predictions. I am considering impregnating you all with a litter of my kittens. Or puppies. Your choice. No beta. I own nothing, CH personally loaned me these characters. I will be returning Eric rode hard and put away wet. I am crossing my fingers for another chappy tomorrow night? Cuz eff the SuperBowl, that's why. Except for the Puppy and Kitten Bowl, that's a winner. I need a life. Don't judge me.**

Ch 23

Claudine was shaking her head back and forth, holding her temples. I knew immediately she was not involved, judging from the alarm and sadness coming from her. Claude sat there looking unreadable and worse, unsurprised.

"So, shall I repeat my questions or is someone going to start talking soon?" Silence. "Claude, you clearly know something. What? And don't even try bullshitting me, it's written all over your face as clearly as that eyeliner you pretend you don't wear." I was getting crankier by the second. As soon as Eric's left, I felt my mood change-it reminded me of when your blood sugar drops too low and you need to eat. Huh. That's new.

Claudine whipped her head around, "What does she mean, Claude?"

He heaved a big sigh and had the grace to look apologetic. And tired.

"I don't know...much..." He paused for so long I was seriously going to kick him to get him going again.

"Today Preston came to see me. He was acting strange, not himself at all; talking really fast, like he was on some kind of speed. His eyes were glazed and just...off. He asked me where you were, that Grandfather sent him to talk to you. I was still miffed about your little prank the other day, so I told him you were probably six feet under, sleeping with your vampire." I shot him a look that would freeze an ice cube. "I figured he'd run back and tell Grandfather and you would get a talking to, if not by him, maybe Celighn would chew your ear off for giving it up to The Fanged One." His tried to inject some humor, but I wasn't ready for jokes. "He got even more agitated when I said that, ranting about some promise, but he wouldn't say what promise. I asked him what news he had for you, he babbled on about a change coming, change would make it all worth while, a new era. It was super creepy, but he's always been so harmless, I figured it was just lack of sleep or he got into Myra's Calendula patch." That made me recall a time when we all snuck in to the nanny's private garden and got drunk on nectar. Ah, youth.

"When I told him I would tell you he came to talk to you, he got frantic, very adamant I not tell you he was here. You would hurt him if you were expecting him. And that the Prince had tasked him specifically to give you the message, so he needed the element of surprise, so you would listen before hurting him. That's when I started getting a little suspicious. I started questioning him more, asking him how the others in The Palace were, was there any fighting. He started sweating and backing up, said he had to go, then just popped out of here. On a hunch, I popped over to your flat. He was inside snooping. I made a noise and he popped away. And that's it, that's all I know. When you asked if I had any visitors today, I didn't tell you because I knew how mad you would get and without him committing any specific wrongdoing, I couldn't really justify telling you something that would piss you off that much. I figured you'd go back to the Palace to wring his neck and then Grandfather would be mad at me for not keeping you here. And that's all I know, I swear it."

He held his hands up and looked between the two of us. Claudine and I stared him down for a while. After a moment Claudine's eyes met mine and she gave me an almost imperceptible nod that reassured me he was being honest. She once told me she could read him, though he did not know. But most times she gave him his space except when she felt he was being sneaky about something important. "Okay, Claude I believe you."

He let loose a relieved sigh and I was slightly touched he was so worried I would be mad at him. But still annoyed because he wasn't taking our situation-how it affects all of us-seriously. Breandan could have recruited Preston, because he was slow and easily swayed. Preston had special privileges and access and knew us, he could easily harm any one of us before we would catch on. At the very least, he could have been assigned with watching Alberik. "So, he didn't mention anyone else in his rantings, like Breandan or anyone?"

He shook his head. "He did mention a ...Phaedra when he was rambling, but I don't know if that's a person, or a thing, or a place. It didn't mean anything to me. But no mention of Breandan, Sookie. Give me some credit."

Phaedra? I would mention this to Eric, if anyone had heard of it, he would. Ugh, Eric. I could feel him, he was pretty far away, several miles and I didn't like it. Since when could I feel him, even when he's not with me? Maybe I can just shoot him a text and make sure he's-

"Now, we want to know what in the hell happened when you were transported to the vampire!" I took a deep breath and filled them in on every detail, as fast as I could. I wanted to get the hell out of there. The more I thought about it, the more foolish I felt letting Eric leave without me. What if I was right and there was some spell around Alberik so wherever he went Breandan could find him? I knew Eric was more than capable to fight him, but my fairy sword would be added measure. When I finished my story, they both stared at me in stunned silence.

Claudine cleared her throat. "Sookie, I know now is not the time, but we really need to talk with Grandfather about your power. It sounds like it has grown exponentially just tonight. There is no way you alone should have been able to do all of that, given the previous limits of your powers."

"I know! Honestly, it all seemed to happen after I mixed Eric's blood with the fairy mixture you gave me. What was that?"

"It was a bonding potion designed to bind to the tie Eric's blood had with Alberik's and then draw out element's of the latter-"

"A BONDING potion?!"

"Well, yes, I-I had to use that to draw out his brother's essence..."

I felt light-headed. Cripes, this was sounding just fucktastic. I didn't know what it meant, but I think I had a feeling. Okay, deep breaths, deal with this later. "It's okay Claudine, we'll figure it all out." I faked a bravado I didn't feel. "Maybe I can meet with Dr. Ludwig at some point and see if she knows."

I was just trying to dismiss it and move on. "Do you think Preston is the only one at The Palace in on this? I couldn't tell what room we were in, honestly. I just knew the smell and I saw a cabinet with the Brigant crest. There appeared to be no windows. Could it have been a section of a basement or one of the outbuildings on the property? Somewhere he could have been hidden away?" I so desperately didn't want anyone else from our family or friends involved.

"Sookie, there are so many places he could have been hidden away, it is very possible. It's not like you found him in the main hall, where everyone would see him. He was clearly placed somewhere in secret." She came over and pulled me into an embrace. "I know you are worried that there are others, or worse, even Grandfather, involved. But honestly, Sookie, in my heart, I know it can't be. I think this was an isolated incident of treachery. Maybe Breandan or one of his people put a spell on Preston, or drugged him, keeping him functional."

"Hmph-not so much anymore."

"Yes, well." I broke out of her grip on me. "One of us has to go back. We have to warn them, especially Great Grandfather. What if he doesn't know about Preston and he was trusting him with certain things he would use against him? I mean, he lives at the Palace! If he were to hurt him..." It made my blood boil. Oh, I would definitely hunt him down and finish the job. It gave me small comfort knowing he would be incapacitated for a while. While we planned that out, it did cross my mind that a few hours ago, I was completely willing to go back, and now I was hesitant. I felt an ache at the thought of leaving. Another huh. We decided Claude would go. He had seen Preston most recently and would use the excuse of his odd behavior, wanting to be sure he got back to our realm okay, that nothing was too amiss, etc. He didn't want to go till the next morning, though he wouldn't say why. I had a feeling he wanted to say goodbye to his newest flame, Reynaldo. I had seen them eyeballing each other hotly at the club, when they thought no one was looking. Since morning was only a few hours away, it would barely be a blink of an eye in Fairy, so it could wait a few more hours.

We were wrapping it up, I was getting very antsy to get the deuce out of there and get to Eric. I apologized to them both for flying off the handle and automatically assuming they were in on whatever was going on and gave Claude a kiss on the cheek. "You be careful, okay? Don't forget I've still one-upped you in the prank department. You can't allow that and keep your held held high." He winked at me, "Bitch, please." And off he went, leaving us both in better humors.

I stretched and looked around for my phone. Oops, there was still the matter of one silver chair sitting in the middle of the living room. I almost popped it the hell out of there, then thought better of it, last minute.

Going into my bedroom, I told Claudine I didn't feel safe staying at my place any more, what with traitorous fairies popping in and out-I had to sleep some time. I would be staying with Eric, at least for a little while. She gave me a smug smile as I poked my head into my closet. "Hush-don't even go there. Will you be okay by yourself? Should I see if Eric has a place we can both stay?"

She patted me on the shoulder. "Thank you, Cousin, I will be fine. You are more in danger than I, at this point."

I quickly packed a small suitcase with several items. I wasn't even sure about being at Fangtasia now because it was a public place, anyone could come and go. Argh, I needed to talk to Eric. I reached out to feel him. He was there, feeling approximately the same distance from me as before. I found my phone and shot him a text, "Getting ready to leave and head to you. Where?" I threw toiletries in a large bag and heard a ding from my phone a minute later.

"Remember route to cabin?"

"Mostly"

"I'll meet you halfway"

"K. Bro ok?"

"Decent"

"Ok. Leaving in 5min"

"K"

"Do you love him, Sookie?" I heard directly behind me.

"Holy crackers! You scared me! Must everyone in my life know how to sneak up on me?!"

"Sorry. Do you?"

I blushed a little and busied myself gathering things. "It's too soon for anything even close to that, Claudine."

"You really are becoming more fairy by the minute!"

"Wha-?"

"Question and answer avoidance. We have mastered it."

"Bah!"

She got serious again "Love doesn't always read the book, Sookie. Especially if fate is involved."

"Who says it is?" I asked, wondering again if she didn't know more about my future than I did.

"Who says it isn't?"

"Damn fairies." I muttered and she laughed.

"Are you ready? I'll help you carry it all to the car." We locked the place up and we popped us, plus bags downstairs to the car.

"Well, Cousin, don't pop off and get married without calling me-"

"Oh, you shush with that. Call me as soon as you hear from Claude, or if anything else happens and I'll do the same. If you change your mind and want to stay with me, just say the word, okay?"

"I will, don't worry about me, Sookie." We said our goodbyes and we both tried not to get teary-eyed, though I wasn't sure why we would be. I pondered that on my drive toward the cabin. I guess it was because it was pretty significant that, for the first time, I was staying with someone other than my family for protection. And it was a vampire. A vampire I was clearly attached to, though how much was something I didn't want to think about right at the moment.

Speaking of him, I could feel my mood and tension lift the further out of the city I got; i.e. closer to Eric. Literally I felt him get closer, and the closer we got, the happier I felt. When I reached a desolated four-way stop, I knew he was somewhere very close by, so I got out of the car and looked up at the sky, expectantly.

"I see you can feel my proximity, as I can yours, Lover?" I felt his cool lips on my ear and I shivered. Turning around to slide my arms around his waist, I breathed him in and silently thrilled in his presence. I felt like it had been weeks since I had seen him.

"I can. That's new, huh?" He walked me backwards to the car and rested me against it, but lifted me, so we were at equal height, supporting me by pressing his hips against mine. Though I felt his huge length, hard against my stomach, I didn't feel like he was trying to sex me up. It was more like we were snuggling and It just happened to be there.

He buried his nose in my neck and hair and, I think, mumbled "Yes." We stood there like that, well he stood, I floated, for a time. "Let's get to the cabin. I'll drive." He made sure I was in the passenger's side but needed a shoe horn to fit in to the driver's side of my car.

"Where's my phone? I need this on camera." He tried giving me a scary look, which was a fail, given his position, but he finally got the seat back and the steering wheel up to give him room. I didn't hold my snickering back, despite all the stink-eye he tried to subdue me with. But I could see the twinkle in his eye and knew he was trying not to laugh himself. We rode the last ten minutes in silence. We needed to talk, but right then, we needed the comfort our nearness brought us more.

When we got there, he set my bags down inside the foyer and said "I want to show you something. Come. We don't have a lot of time."

He lead me down to a path that paralleled the river. We walked on it for a few hundred feet when he pointed out a crooked tree and we made a right off the path. After another few hundred feet, we reached a small clearing. It wasn't even really much of a clearing, just a fairly empty patch between three trees. He walked to one of the trees that had a very large knot in the trunk and tapped his boot on the ground, rooting around in the twigs and leaves, until I heard the sound of a hollow board. He reached down and pulled the board, camouflaged with leaves and sticks out of it's ledge and laid it off to the side, I couldn't see anything other than a hole of nothingness, which did not make me want to jump on in.

He pulled a small Maglite out of his pocket and shined it down in the hole. It was a man-made cement cavern that was maybe a few inches taller than Eric and barely as wide. He slid down then held his arms up to help me down. "Uhm, unless there's room in your pocket, I don't think I'm fitting down there." I wasn't afraid of many things, but tight, enclosed spaces was one.

"Trust me." Ugh. I sighed, shimmied my lower half in, then let him get me the rest of the way down. Of course, he couldn't let the moment pass without pretending to molest my nether regions as I dangled for a second, waiting for him to pull me the rest of the way down. But it helped ease my nervousness. Once down with him, there was a little more room than I first thought, but not too much more. There actually was a ladder that lead down from the top of the hole. He handed me the flashlight, stepped on the first rung of the ladder, pulled the lid back into the place and gestured to a wall behind us. There was a large electronic display there and he began punching buttons, then pressed his thumb on a pad, then put his eye up to a window and I watched the beam of light scan his retina. Finally a voice asked him to speak his name, which he did. The opposing cement wall, slid back and revealed a small lit entry, with another panel of gadgets. Another retinal scan, voice ID and another code and a metal wall slid open to reveal a huge space.

He led me in and I followed, my mouth dragging the floor. "Wow. Quite an underground bunker you've got here."

"It's not much, but it works in a pinch." He winked and gave me a quick tour. The ceilings were lower than normal and it wasn't huge by normal house standards, but it was probably about 600 square feet. There was a small food storage/kitchen area, a living room space and even a decent bedroom and a small but surprisingly luxurious bathroom. It was essentially a half bath-a shower stall, toilet and sink. Pretty fancy for a bunker. There appeared to even be a limited amount of electricity.

"How on earth did you have all this built? Plumbing, electricity?! This is amazing!"

Pulling me into his arms and plopping us onto the couch, "Money can get you even the most unusual things, Sookie. Though, these days, it wasn't too unusual. As far as the contractors were aware, this is a Doomsday prep bunker. They had several, pre-fab models to choose from, this one being the most extravagant, of course." I rolled my eyes at him. "That and the Were contractor that built it knows me, so knew not to question it. Thankfully, I left the décor up to Pam, otherwise it might have been a little Spartan." I laughed hard at that-it was decorated beautifully. If you hadn't seen the way we came in, you'd think it was a small metropolitan apartment.

"That explains the kitchen, bathroom and ventilation. Not something you guys need, but I could see how it would come standard."

"Precisely."

"Except that bathroom! I bet that wasn't standard."

"Ffft! That tiny thing?" He winked at me. His mood got serious. "The reason I brought you here is so you have a place to hide if you need to. This will be somewhere you can come with or without me if you need to. I will set you up when we leave with your own code, thumbprint recognition, voice command and retinal scan. If something happens, come down here and I will meet you here as soon as it is safe."

I nodded. "I wonder if I could pop down here?"

"Something to try out. However, I would prefer we try that tomorrow. Dawn is not too far off. Come, look" He showed me a closet, where the controls for the generator and air-ventilation were. He also showed me the hatch to an escape tunnel and explained it went about 50 feet in the opposite direction of the entrance and ended in a thickly wooded spot to disguise it's presence. That was a last ditch emergency plan for anything unforeseen. Wow, he really thought of everything.

He then took me back out the way we came and did as promised. My code was numeric for Suzie, the laser scanned both my eyes and I pressed both thumbs onto the finger print pad. When it was time for me to record me speaking my name, he said, "Speak it slowly and calmly." I did, but gave him a quirked eyebrow. He understood my query, as usual. "If someone is trying to get to one of us, they could rip out one of our eyes, cut off a thumb or torture us for the code, but they can't steal our vocal chords, or make us say it under duress in a calm slow manner. At the very least, one more step to make it that much more difficult to get in." He got me all programmed in, then made me close both walls behind us, to get used to it.

Then we were in the Claustrophobic Chamber as I now called it. He stashed the flashlight at the base of the ladder for my future use and gave me the "be quiet" finger. He listened for a moment, then tapped his head, pointed at me then made the perimeter signal with his finger. Ah, gotcha, scan for signs of life. I did and got nothing, so shook my head and made the "ok" fingers. It was uncanny how good a team we made, with very little verbalization. It was kind of fun, except that we were practicing a worst case scenario. I think it would be fun cleaning fish, if I were doing it with him. Being around him was making me giddy.

He nodded and boosted me up through the hole, then floated himself up. He had me slide the camouflaged board back into place to get a feel for the whole process. Once in place, you really could not tell it was there. "I am beyond amazed at how thoroughly and well-thought out you handle your defense strategies."

He lead me deeper into the woods. "A thousand years is a long time to live, Sookie. And almost the entire time has been spent trying to constantly outwit those who wish me harm." There wasn't much I could say to that and it made me sad, quite frankly. Yet, somehow he had managed not to be a depressed, fearful creature, but one with joie de vivre and natural good humor. I grabbed his hand and squeezed it and he looked back at me and smiled. A few more feet and we were deep in some heavy thicket and trees. He pointed at two medium sized Oaks close together, then toed the ground again. He found what he was looking for and cleared away the leaves and brush. He pulled back another hatch-this one stayed attached to the tunnel. It was some type of galvanized metal, maybe steel and it was about as wide as Eric's shoulders. Ugh, it was gonna be a sad day for me, if I had to crawl through there for fifty feet of lung constricting and mental torture. But, survival was survival. Pleased I had seen enough, he closed it and I said a silent thanks that he didn't make me get in and out of that thing. He wrapped my hands around his waist, looked at me, I nodded, he nodded and up we flew. We landed on the front porch and we went inside. Now we could finally talk, though there wasn't much time before sunrise. I hoped there was time for sex, too.

**P.S. Oh and for you gardeners and botanists-I know real Calendula would not yield any feelings of drunkness or produce nectar. But I liked the sound of it for that bit of the story. Hey, it's Fairy land, everything probably gives you nectar and makes you drunk!**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: So, as promised, another chapter, though brief. Also as promised, a lemon for you. Oh yeah, and Godric beat out Appius in a Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock fight. Whew, this story is consuming me. My mind is constantly thinking of it. Oh, well. I'm gonna go watch me some real sports-Puppy/Kitten Bowl. As always, thank you ever so much for all the lovely reviews, I will spend time replying back to them tonight. I am honored at the amazing things you guys say. And thank you to those who set me straight about why we are questioning DEA's HEA re:the short stories set after DEA referencing Sam and Beehl as non-contenders. I did not realize they were set after that book. I apologize for any typos, grammar, etc as my eyes are extra tired, burny, itchy today so stuff is blurry-yay allergies. I may have to re-re-edit once I do another read through tomorrow and my eyes have rested. Okay, I own nothing. Kisses and hip thrusts from the Viking.**

Ch. 23

Once inside, Eric gestured I follow him to the kitchen and he sat me at the bar. "Is Alberik here?"

He shook his head, "I left him with Pam. She has two pets at her home and has him feeding from them in shifts." He placed a plate, heaping with food in front of me. Pork tenderloin, steamed broccoli and three bean salad. I looked up at him in disbelief. "What? Did you not believe me when I told you I could cook?"

"I guess not. More like I couldn't really picture it. This looks fantastic! You really made all of this?"

"All but the bean salad. That was pre-made. I got it when I got the other items. Stop staring at it like its got two heads and eat it! You need to eat and we're short on time." I started shoveling. In between bites, "So tell me what you did when you left."

"I immediately flew to Fangtasia. I knew there would be a ready source of donors there. We had to actually cute the donors veins, since he has no fangs." He grit out between his teeth. "He is not quite alert enough to talk about what happened, but he recognizes Pam and I and has said a few words. Once he had a decent amount of blood and was resting, I had Dr. Ludwig check him over. She says the worst part is healing from the silver poisoning. That will take some time but allowing him readily available blood sources will speed the process. He is 400 years old which is not a young vampire, so it hopefully won't take him too long. But they injected him with silver, so there's a lot of internal healing he needs to do. It is a very painful process."

"Ugh. Poor Alberik." I felt nauseous. "And his fangs and hand will grow back?"

His jaw was clenched, "That will take much longer."

I felt like crying for him, but fought it. "Well I would like to meet him as soon as possible and maybe I can help him...feel better, calmer or something, anything to lessen his pain."

"I am glad to hear that. He's been in and out of consciousness all night, only waking when we pressed blood to his lips, but asking for his Bergljót." He looked at me pointedly.

I repeated it, "Bergljót?" and pondered while I chewed. Was he asking if I knew what that meant? "Sounds Scandinavian, but that's all I got."

"Old Norse. It's a woman's name. Berg is help or save, ljótr is light. He considers you his light savior. "

"Aww, that's sweet. I don't know about all that, though." Changing the subject because the current one made me uncomfortable. "Tell me about your history. You two look so much alike, even his name has Eric in it!" I joked.

He got a far away look. "Godric, my maker, was a very fair maker. Whereas many will keep their progeny bound to them permanently, or at their whim, mine never did. I stayed with him for 600 years. We enjoyed and understood each other. After a time, I wanted to branch out on my own, to see if I could endure being solitary. During those times, there were no fangbangers who craved our company, so it was a lonely existence, unless you had another vampire or a nest. And truthfully, I had become unhappy and restless. I wanted something else, but didn't know what. So, he let me go. I traveled everywhere-Africa, The Orient, Antarctica, The Americas, though they weren't called that yet. After centuries of travel, we met up again in Europe. He had Alberik in tow. I had a feeling, a few decades prior, he had created another child. I felt a new thread in our bond. It pained me deeply because I knew he had created him to make up for my absence. Not to hurt me, but because he had been lonely and we did truly love each other. And I could tell they didn't have what we had. Anytime you try to fill a void in haste, without letting go and moving on, it is never the same. I believe humans call it a rebound." He smirked at his own joke. "And, once Alberik met me, he knew as well. So, it was an all around awkward situation. But we adapted. We three cavorted around Europe for another century or so. It was a new and exciting time of science and advancement, so that kept us entertained. And then I met Pam. Completely on a whim, I turned her. She made an excellent vampire. There was a lot of sex between us in the first few years." He looked slightly apologetic and I fought a surge of jealousy. Remember-water under the bridge. "I was possessive of her at first, and would not share her with Godric or Alberik, and Godric allowed it. We grew bored of each other quickly, as most maker and child sex does. She and Alberik became quite fond of each other, sexually, and even became exclusive, which is a rarity between vampires. Then they shared a mutual pet. A woman whose name is insignificant now, but they fought over her ferociously. So much so, that we needed to separate them. We forbid them to fight, but that didn't stop the animosity. None of us had a moments peace, they were always attacking each other verbally. We came to America and they stayed in Europe. Once our maker met his true death, Alberik came here. He never stays long, just visits then travels around, but he claims New York as his home."

"Can I ask about Godric?"

"You may, but I will save that for another night. We need to talk about everything that happened tonight."

"Ah. Good point." I walked my empty plate to the sink and cleaned it. He came behind me and pressed me to him, while I cleaned and placed it on a towel to dry. I turned in his arms. "What do you think the chances are we could stay on task while talking and showering at the same time? I feel icky." I eyeballed him in a challenge.

He put on his best face of extreme innocence and held up a hand. "I will be on my best behavior." "Hmf!"

* * *

We did pretty well, until it came to actually soaping up. He allowed me to wash my own hair, while he watched at full attention, in every aspect, while we compared what I saw to what he saw. He literally saw everything I did. While Claudine and Claude were running around, wondering where I had gone, Eric was watching the magic orb above the area where our triad had been. For him, it was still there for him, but they did not see it. He saw every step I took, everything I had seen, through my eyes, as if it were playing out on television. My cousins thought I might be stuck somewhere and Claudine went to get her reference book from her place, in fear they would have to work some strong spells to get me back. I was back before she could even retrieve it, but he knew that. I filled him in on my talk with my cousins, my theory about Preston and that Claude was going back to talk to Niall. Then we got soapy.

"So-ah-what do you make of how you lit up, right after me, when I mixed the fairy potion into your blood?" He was running his hands, very slick with body wash over my breasts, palming my nipples.

"The feeling was exquisite." He never stopped his motions, making circles now. "I assumed it had something to do with the magic of the potion. What do _you_ make of it?" He gently lifted my breasts and squeezed them.

"I, uhm," this shit was seriously distracting but I wasn't going to complain, "I think we need to Dr. Ludwig about that." His hands slid down to my bottom and squeezed, then pulled my hips into his, making small thrusting motions with is hips. I couldn't help the gasp I made and I closed my eyes, leaning into him for support.

"Oh? Why is that?" He continued "helping me" by, rubbing my bottom and my inner thighs with his slippery hands, at that sensitive spot where the butt meets the legs and in between.

I was trying to keep my voice steady and not pant, "Because the fairy potion I added to your blood was a binding potion."

His movements stilled. Damn. I opened my eyes.

"Who told you this?" His expression was very tense.

My words came out in a rush, and increased in pitch the more I spoke "Claudine had to use a binding serum to draw out the elements of your blood that are bonded with Alberik's, because of your shared maker, in order to find him. It was the only thing we had that contained traces of him, but I didn't know it was potentially going to be a binding thing until she told me after the fact and now I'm thinking we are somehow bonded in some way, since you lit up right after I did and then you were able to see when I went to Fairy, but I don't really know, so I think if we ask Dr. Ludwig because if that is the case, I understand if you don't want-"

"Sookie, sshhhh, it's alright." He pressed his lips to my forehead. "I'm not mad." He pulled back to look at me, "Surprised, yes, but not mad. You didn't know. In fact, it was a huge sacrifice you made doing all you have done. So, if the worst thing to come from all of this is that we are somehow bonded in a fairy sense, then so be it. I am honored. I owe you much more for every chance, every risk you've taken to help me."

His words were so heartfelt, so full of reverence and loyalty. The tears slipped down my cheeks before I even knew they were there. Then the tears turned to sobs. Followed by racking sobs, more tears and snot. I had been fighting it all night and my slip of a few tears at his tenderness turned into a deluge of other emotions-hurt, fear, betrayal, exhaustion, the tumult of whatever our feelings were for each other-it all surged right at that moment. So I had a good cry. I had a meltdown right there in the shower. And Eric held me while I worked through it. Until I quieted and just plain ran out of tears.

He rinsed us, toweled us off, then placed me in bed. I loved this bed. We lay on our sides while I traced a pattern with my fingers on the blanket. "Sorry."

"Don't be. You have been though more tonight than I think many vampires could handle. And this is the first moment you've had to even relax and reflect all night."

"Thank you. For the record, I hate crying."

He kissed my streaked, hot cheeks and his cool lips felt wonderful against my skin. "For the record, I hate seeing you cry. It makes me want to smash things."

I laughed at his deadpan tone. "So, do you think Alberik is safe for the time being? I am worried some Water Fairy will pop in and steal him back or something."

"While Dr. Ludwig was there, I had her see if she could detect any tracking or recall magic that would allow someone to find him or conjure him back to them and she found nothing. No traces of anything but the silver. I have a feeling they weren't that well-thought out. Especially if you are correct about that Preston being the one chosen to watch over him. And if he visited your cousin with the intent to snatch you up or harm you, he doesn't sound very bright. He obviously hasn't met you. You are a formidable opponent." He joked. "I wonder if he was the reason for the lack of smell around your building."

"Maybe."

"Speaking of smell, I think I am now immune to the craze that the fairy smell used to induce." Why did a teeny tiny part of me feel sad at this information? I'll examine that sick thought more thoroughly later.

"I noticed you seemed surprisingly under control when we were in my apartment."

He nodded, "It didn't happen until you mixed the potion to my blood and I lit up. Once I felt that magic flow through me, a lot of things seemed to change. The enthrall of the fairy scent, I was able to see you in the Fae realm, now we can feel each others proximity."

"Yeah, I felt that, plus I was very anxious, until I could feel you were closer. I felt like a caged panther at my apartment, until I was on my way here."

"It is almost like a blood bond, except we still can't feel each others emotions."

"Hmm...sounds like more questions for Dr. Ludwig." I snuggled into his neck. "So, you're immune to my smell now, huh? Tsk, tsk. My blood will probably taste normal too, so you'll probably tire of me now..." I fake pouted.

He growled and flipped me so he was on top of me, and buried his face into me. "That will never happen, Sookie. And you know it, so do not even joke." He was being very serious. "You still have the same smell as you always have to me: that sweet, delicious, haunting scent that makes me driven to distraction and madness, that makes me want to fuck you and bite you and rub myself all over you."

"Does it, now?" I arched my neck and ran my leg between his thighs.

He growled again, this time much sexier, if that was possible. "You little minx. Your attempt to get me to bite you will not succeed. I have taken too much of your blood tonight."

I ran my tongue around the shell of his ear and bit his earlobe. He shivered. I slid my hand between us and gripped him firmly, "Then you had better make it up to me in another way." I heard his fangs snick down before his lips attacked mine, demanding entry, which I gladly gave. I squeezed his length a little tighter and slid my hand up and down his shaft, eliciting a grunt from him. He reciprocated by sliding his hand down my stomach to test my readiness.

"Gods, Sookie. So wet, so soft." He ran his fingers through my slick folds, then slid two of them inside without warning and I cried out. "So warm. How could you ever think I could tire of you?" He moved his fingers in and out, then placed his thumb on my nub and made circles. "I will probably meet my final death still wanting more of you." If he kept that up much longer, this was going to be over before it started. No more time for foreplay. I needed him inside of me, on top of me. Now.

"Show me." I pulled his engorged cock to my entrance and as soon as he removed his fingers, I wrapped my legs around his waist and pulled him inside of me. We both cried out at the same time. He was still for a moment, and we both just enjoyed the feeling of being joined. Then I bit his chest, "Show me!" which spurred him into action.

It was fast and hard, but that was exactly what I needed right then. I was scratching at his back with my nails and biting into his shoulder and chest as he pounded into me. Something about the intensity and the drama we had that night, but it didn't take long. A few more deep thrusts and a hip tilt or two and I was close. I felt the now familiar coiling in my nether region and stomach. "Ah-Eric!" He unlatched my hold on him and pulled his head back, to look at me.

"Come for me, Sookie." So I did, keeping my eyes locked on his as I cried out. He followed right behind me, and I watched him, his eyes burning holes into me, while he exclaimed something in his native tongue. One day I would ask him what it meant. Or look it up. He fell forward on top of me. I wrapped my arms and legs around him like a spider monkey. He rolled off me, onto his side and I whined at the loss. "Dawn is very close. I don't want to crush you."

I didn't have the strength to argue. My eyelids felt like they weighed a hundred pounds each. "Mmmkay. I'll be here when you wake up tomorrow."

"You had better be." He kissed me gently and I barely moved my lips in response. He laughed. "Sweet dreams, Lover."

The last thing I mumbled before I passed out, "I almost forgot, have you ever heard of Phaedra?" But I succumbed to sleep before he could answer, and did not see the look of rage that crossed his face.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Cheese and rice, as Bookie would say. This chapter would not shape up. So, here's one of pure fluff. More to come fairly quickly, because this one was supposed to contain Alberik, Phaedra, Pam, et al, but then the whole chase scene shat it's way out. Jaysus. Anyhoo. Love you all, my little fang bangers. Your reviews make me laugh, cry and eat chocolate. I won't waste time on this note because I want to work on the next chappy. Enjoy, I own nothing, pardon any word fuckery, no Beta, yada x 2.**

Ch. 25

The first thing I felt upon slowly gaining consciousness for the day was my bladder. Once that was relieved, I washed my face, brushed my teeth and I felt half alive again. Okay, it was noonish; I had some time. It felt good to get back to a decent schedule. I didn't mind staying awake till dawn with Eric, but I did mind sleeping as late as I had been the last few days. I really only needed about 4 hours, but forgave myself the luxury of 6 since I had a pretty eventful night. I immediately checked in with Claudine. Claude had said goodbye this morning but nothing new otherwise. I made some coffee, ate some granola and unpacked my bags. There was a note on the kitchen counter for me. It was in the most lovely script. It reminded me of my great grandfather's writing. Very old fashioned.

"Sookie, I hope you are well rested and comfortable this day. Make yourself at home. I have made room for you in the closet, if you need any additional space, feel free to move things around. There are groceries in the kitchen, please make sure you eat. I worry you don't eat enough because of me. Before you fell asleep last night, you mentioned Phaedra. I do know this name and am eager to talk to you about how. Until then, I look forward to your face being the first thing I see when I wake. Your naked body being the second. Yours, Eric"

I smirked. It seemed so wrong to have such lovely penmanship say something smutty. Only Eric. Well, this was some news. Damn I wish I had asked him about it sooner. On a whim, I Googled it. There was a reference to the name under Greek mythology, but it didn't tell me anything relevant. Guess I could wait a few more hours.

I threw on some loose clothes and popped outside. Now that I knew I could, without fear of him getting all fairy crazy, why mess with setting a code? I stood on the deck for a bit. I stretched and I listened. I absorbed and identified all the normal sounds around me: birds, wind through the trees, the flow of the river, an occasional boat motor far off in the distance. I scanned for any brain activity and found none. Taking off at a jog, I looked for the trail Eric showed me last night, I wanted to see if I could find it from a different starting point. I found the crooked tree quickly, then followed it through from there. Once I found the bunker entrance, I looked all around me. I studied every tree, bush, and the surrounding paths leading in and out of the area. Once I thought I had sufficiently memorized the area, I worked on getting inside. I went in and out, the manual way three times. Then I popped in and out three times. Note to self, get a few more flashlights to stash around. Every time I popped in, I ended up in a different spot and I couldn't see a damn thing. I found the escape tunnel and looked in. It looked a shade less awful than at night but not much. I jogged around the area some more, trying to lose the trail so I could pick it up again from different points. Emergencies rarely played out like you planned them, especially if under attack, so alternate routes were always necessary. Once I was satisfied there I jogged back to the cabin. I popped up to the roof and surveyed the area from that height. My assessment complete, I jogged for another half an hour, did my usual sit ups, push ups and pull ups, feeling like a slug for slacking on my workouts. Again, it felt good to get back to my routine.

I grabbed my phone and laid out in the sun for a bit, in my underwear again, feeling more confident that no one could see me after surveying the area so thoroughly. Flipping through my contacts, I dialed Alcide Herveaux, the contractor I was supposed to meet today, to start working on the new design of Fangtasia. I assumed that plan was still on, that they had found someone else to meet him there today. That seemed like lifetimes ago that we discussed all that. I missed Pam, I laughed, right as he answered. I explained who I was and he filled me in. Pam had made Ginger meet them up there, which made me cringe a little, since she didn't seem like she could find her way out of a wet paper bag. I asked if he had a floorplan and he said Eric had left them one and very detailed instructions. The bulk of it would be done tonight but he had a few questions for me, Pam or Eric regarding part of the design. I had him make me a list of questions and email those and some photos of what they had done by quitting time today, just in case we weren't able to go in tonight. I promised I would get him answers so they could finish by tomorrow afternoon because we opened on Tuesday and it had to be done by then, case closed. He seemed annoyed, but I poured the charm on fairly thick and that seemed to appease his male ego, vomit.

I had no idea what our plans were the next few days, other than to meet Alberik. And maybe Dr. Ludwig, if she had time. I didn't like standing around, doing nothing, so we were going to have to do something. Okay, sex could take up a fair amount of time...I lay back and enjoyed the feeling of my skin soaking up the sun's warmth. Speaking of the sexy Viking, what the hell happened last night? Both of us lit up the same way at almost the same time. Did that potion forge some kind of bond between us? Or as Eric called it, a fairy bond? But if it did, wouldn't that mean Alberik was involved, too, since it was drawing his essence out of Eric's blood? Argh-more questions without answers.

Okay, my feelings for Eric could be answered, but did I want to answer? I definitely felt something. I cared for him, but why so soon and to what capacity? Did we have anything resembling a future or was this just a hot and heavy fleeting romance. I doubted the latter but at the same time, couldn't visualize us in fifty years, either. I certainly wasn't against that, however. How would he feel about that? It seemed he would get bored with me after a time. I chided myself-that wasn't a fair assumption. In fact, he had said he would be honored if we ended up bonded. And that he would go to his final death still wanting me. So, yeah, that was pretty deep. He didn't seem the type to say anything he didn't mean.

I thought of Claudine's words-love didn't always read the book or follow the rules. My nanny Myra told me that Supe relationships and love were different-they happened very hard and fast. They weren't constrained by human ideals of propriety or religious influence. I always burned with questions when I came back from visiting my Gran in the human realm and I was particularly fascinated by human dating and coupling rituals, as a teen, anyway. Hard and fast described us pretty well. And what else did Caludine say, something about us being fated? Or possibly so. What the hell did that mean? I had never heard of it, other than silly romance novels about star-crossed lovers. And even if it were so, why would Fate be so concerned with the two of us, who were we to have grabbed Fate's attentions? I didn't even know how to refer to It/Her/Him-was it an entity or a deity or an element? Not that I was one to poo-poo the unknown with out seeing all the facts, but it seemed more likely that "Fate" was actually The Council, that had an ulterior motive for Eric and I to be brought together.

Regardless of whether it was someone's plan for us or a huge powerful entity that hand-picked us, I cared for Eric in huge, surprising and powerful ways. I was riding this thing out to the end, whatever that entails. I felt good, like I had at least accomplished one thing by answering my own questions and being honest with myself. If he asked me how I felt I would tell him, but that didn't really seem to be a question in his mind. He was content with whatever was going on between us and if he was okay, then I was too.

The sun was dipping a little lower in the sky, so I went inside content with my tan and my new resolve. I grabbed the laptop and took it upstairs. I took my undies off and was going to rinse off in the shower, but thought better of it, since he seemed to like the sun smell on my skin. Instead, I grabbed one of his tank tops from the chair he had draped it on last night. It went just barely over my bum, but I figured he would like that, too. It smelled like him. Yum. I looked at my delicious Viking, the sheets draped across his bottom, though I could still see the outline of his yummy butt. I ran my hand over it and over the smooth muscles of his back, cool to the touch. It didn't put me off at all, in fact, it was sexy. We were opposites. Duality in life was a constant, so the fact we embodied that seemed...right.

Before I got myself too worked up, I sat up in bed next to him and opened up my email. Herveaux had done as I'd asked and sent me pictures and his list of questions. The work they had done was amazing, though they may not have finished, I was impressed with how far they got in eight hours. My eyes got a little droopy and tired while I stared at the screen, so I shut it and snuggled up to my vampire, planning on resting my eyes for a bit.

I woke to the feeling of being rolled onto my back. I felt kisses being placed on my neck and lips. I tried not to respond in any way, feigning sleep. When the kisses trailed down to my chest, the lips paused and I felt the weight of his body ease from mine. Suddenly there was a tongue in my belly button and I screeched. "Eww, ew, ew-ticklish! Off limits!"

My golden-haired torturer was sitting back, looking pleased with himself. "Don't fake being asleep." He shrugged as if fully justified and lay back against the headboard. I wasn't sure if he planned it or not, but he looked ridiculously and completely fuckable. He was half propped, his hair all tousled from sleep, one arm tucked behind his head, flexing the muscles there and in his chest, his abdominal muscles flexed lightly from his position, one leg slightly cocked out and fully, beautifully nude and "awake" in every way. I'm not sure how long I ogled him, but as I ran my eyes back up his body, stopping at his groin, I felt my lady bits clench a little at the sight and get very warm. Inwardly, I sighed, damn lady bits gave me away every time. Regretfully, I made my way up his stomach, his chest, to his eyes. I took a sharp breath in at his expression.

I had expected that cocky, "you know you want it" look he often got at times like this. But that wasn't there. Instead it was a primal and lusty, smoldering stare that belied his relaxed pose. If I had made a move back right then, he would have pounced. I could see his muscles tensed in their lazy looking position, poised to strike. I wasn't sure if it was the eyefuck or maybe the smell of my arousal that instigated it, but I really didn't were both a little on edge lately, to say the least, it might be fun to play. I hoped. So, I poked the bear.

I cocked an eyebrow at him in challenge and slowly worked my way backwards off the bed. He watched me intently, then his eyes widened at my provocation. He licked his lips and smiled in acceptance of the challenge. He unfolded himself from his position, putting his legs under his body, in case he needed to pounce. I stood at the foot of the bed and stretched ridiculously, then turned my back to him, pretending to look at myself in the mirror. "I borrowed a tank top, I hope you don't mind." I ran a hand over my boobs, then my hips. "I was just sooo warm from being in the sun today, but didn't want to have anything too tight against my skin, so I thought this would be comfy. Though it does seem a little small-look it barely covers my bottom and my breasts are popping out the sides." I turned back to him and he was right on the edge of the bed, now sitting with his feet off, touching the floor. He was staring at me so hotly I could feel a thrill, once again, in my center, so I opened my legs, a tiny bit. "Eric? What's the matter? Is it too small? Do you want me to take it off?" His nostrils flared. Bingo. "I'll take it off." I would have made a production of getting it off me, but I wasn't sure how much time I had. I whipped it up and off, letting my hair fall down around my shoulders and breasts. I stared down at him and enjoyed every second of the eyefuck he gave me and the deep cock twitch my nakedness caused him.

"Sookie. Come here." I was just out of arms reach of him. I took a step back and couldn't stop the small smile that worked it's way across my lips. "Sookie. Just to be sure, you are aware you're playing with fire? And that I will catch you."

"So confident? You'll catch me if I allow it."

His fists clenched at his sides. Heheh. Then his fangs slid. Very. Slowly. Down. Gulp. I felt a thrill at the same time my heart rate sped up obnoxiously. He heard it, of course because his pupils immediately expanded and he got a very sexy and dangerous smile. I took another step back. This was going to be fun. He stood and launched himself at me, but all he caught was air. I popped myself to the kitchen and perched on top of the counter. It wasn't immediately visible when coming down the stairs into the living room. I heard him growl when he realized he'd missed. I made a noise to let him know I was only downstairs and followed his blip. Hey, he had super speed and senses, I had to even the field out somehow.

In a fraction of a second, he was down the stairs. He froze at the base of the stairs and spoke to the air. "You realize, _when_ I catch you, you will be my fairy, to do with as I please. Do you accept this wager?" I snorted and suddenly he was on top of me, pressing my back hard into the counter top and _himself_ into my thigh. He gnashed at my neck, but didn't break the skin. Damn! I knew better than to fall for that! Your enemy uses words to goad you in to reaction or inattentiveness. He palmed my breast while assaulting my neck and I fought the desire winding it's way up through my core. "Do you?" He thrust against me.

I whispered into his ear, "I do. Such easy terms to accept, vampire, when I know you won't win." I bit his ear, then poofed outside. As soon as my feet solidified onto the ground, I started running. I had maybe a minute, if I was lucky. At first, I took the trail toward the bunker and made sure I rubbed myself against the brush along the way, so he would scent me. Not that he needed my help, but hopefully to make him a little nuts with want. Then, I took to the thick woods off the trail's path, the way I had practiced in the daytime. I sensed him behind me, where I had been only seconds ago. Shit, he was faster than I thought.

I stealthily moved along, steadying my breathing so he couldn't hear it and trying to place my feet silently. I had done this type of training with Kvelin, though not while I was naked and hoping to get caught by a lusty vampire. I sensed him now, flying above the area looking for any sign of me. He was very close and I wasn't sure if he was tracking my scent or some noise I was making. He must have spotted me because he was swooping in, so I crouched down in a defensive posture. But he never attacked. And he was still right above me, I felt him. Was he in a tree?

I felt the whoosh and displacement of air just before he dropped himself on top of me, or tried to. I had an elbow ready for him, right to his gut and tried to sweep his legs out, but he was ready for me and dodged by rolling to his side. While I was still on the follow-through spin from my attempted leg sweep, he grabbed my foot and flipped me on my back. I hit the ground hard and my breath left me with one huge "Oof!" He pounced and pinned all my limbs while I squirmed, trying to gain use of my arms.

"Oooh, that feels good." He sneered at me and ground his hips into mine. It just so happened that his extremely hard hard-on rubbed right up against my nub and I gasped and shuddered a little. He looked at me victoriously, "Ah, is that all it takes to render my fairy helpless?" He did it again and my eyes rolled back. His tone switched from arrogant to husky and wanting. "If I had known, I might have started off with this, then." He thrust against me again, but by this time I was dripping wet for him so he slid his length against my clit. I cried out and looked up at him and he looked like he was barely hanging on to his control. He brought his face a little closer, his eyes burning into me. "Is it, Sookie? Is that all it takes to tame my fairy?" My head cleared instantly from the lust filled spell he had put on me. 'Tame his fairy?' Mother fucker! Oh, this was not over. I head butted him, then bucked him off me enough to slip from under him.

I popped out of there and went ahead a few dozen feet. I heard him curse, then I followed his blip up to the sky again. This time he went really high, so high I almost lost him. He probably needed to clear his head. Serves him right. I snickered to myself but kept moving. Truthfully, I needed the cool down, too. I almost lost it there for a minute. He thought he could swing that glorious cock and I'd fall at my knees, begging for him. "Tame my fairy-psht!" Hopefully he was up high enough, he didn't hear me, muttering. I put my feelers out for him. Now he was way off, not up high-he was definitely on the ground, but he was no where nearby. He was probably several hundred feet in the opposite direction, maybe where we first started. What the hell? I trekked forward, unsure what his plan was, but positive he had one.

I made it to the clearing where the underground hidey-hole entrance was located, but stayed in the brush. I had been paying such attention to my stealth tactics, that I lost him. I felt all around, scanning and found nothing. Uh-oh. What was going on? I started to feel a knot in my stomach. Breathe, Sookie. I felt again. He was there, somewhere, actually not too far. I felt his presence via the bond we now had. I just couldn't feel his mental signature that I was so used to relying on. Whew. I climbed from my hiding spot and paced. Well, damn, should I just wait for him to get here or what? I wanted to show him I could pop in and out of the shelter. This kind of ruined my plan of cat and m-

All the wind was knocked out of me as I was face down on the ground with a huge weight pinning me so I couldn't move an inch. "Aha! What have we here? A naughty fairy! Alas, I have captured ye and now ye must yield to me!" He shouted out in an accent somewhere between King Arthur, a pirate and Monty Python.

"Eric! Air." I gasped. He was sitting right on my back, with his full weight, so I could barely breathe, let alone summon a bit of magic to poof out from under him.

He grabbed my hair and pulled my head back so he could now whisper in my ear. "Nay, tricky fairy, ye forfeited any right to leniency when ye hurt my skull and my ego" though he did let his weight off my chest. I took a deep breath in and he flipped me so I was on my back. I was glad I took a breath because I needed it to howl in laughter.

He was wearing a genuine Viking helmet! "Eric, what-" I couldn't finish. I was laughing so hard tears were rolling down the sides of my face. He sat back, still pinning me at my waist and watched me with a smug look. He let me tire myself with laughter.

When I was done, "Yes, Sookie, your eyes do not deceive you. I am wearing my Viking helmet. I went back to the house to get it."

"For god's sake, why?!" More laughter. "And where's the horns?" I was kidding, but wanted to tease him.

"I don't have that one here at this property." He said it so seriously and I wasn't ready for that response, so I cackled some more, despite the cramp in my stomach.

"Did it work?" He stared me down with his still smug expression while I looked at him clueless.

"What?"

"The iron in my helmet. You could not track me. I took you by surprise, clearly."

My eyes got big as saucers and he puffed up even more with gloat. "Cheater."

"Whaaaat?! How dare you call me a cheater, when every time I catch you, you pop away!"

"Hey, you have the advantage of super sonic senses! I have to be able to level the playing field."

"Bullshit. You being able to track me, mentally, levels the playing field quite evenly, I think."

"Foof!"

"Is that what you say when you lose and don't get your way, your Royal Brattiness?" He wove his hands through my hair and leaned into me. I couldn't head butt him this time, unless I wanted a concussion.

"Oooohh!" He knew just how to piss me right off. I tried to pop out from under him but couldn't, I could feel the magic try to spark, then fizzle out. He was staring at me with a huge shit-eating grin, which was pissing me off even more. I was flailing under him, trying to get something to happen, then it dawned on me; the iron. The close proximity was making me incapable of magic and it was draining some of my strength.

I stopped struggling and sighed. "Done? Ready to admit defeat?"

"Never!"

He threw his head back in laughter and rolled us over, me now on top of him and he tossed his helmet several feet away. "Just what I like-a warrior spirit. Never give up." He pulled me into him but I resisted, still peeved and being prideful."Sookie, I captured you fairly. Will you dishonor our bet?" He looked up at me, very serious.

"No." I mumbled.

"What's that? I didn't quite hear you."

"No!" I shouted at him, like a child, but I couldn't stop myself. I hated losing. He laughed at my impetuousness until I caved and laughed too. His humor was too infectious. He could be so serious, so scary sometimes, so when his light side came through there was no resisting it. He hugged me to him and we lay like that on the ground.

After a time, "Can we get up, I think I got bit by something." He scooped me up in a flash and I wrapped my legs around his waist.

"Of course, my fairy conquest." I growled at him. "Lover, that only arouses me when you do that." He thrust himself against me and my eyelids fluttered, fucking traitors. He gave me a knowing look and picked his helmet up, "Back to the cabin or is there a reason you lured me out here?"

"Yes, actually. I wanted to show you that I could pop in and out of the shelter. I can also find it via several different routes, off the obvious trail, but you already saw that" I smirked. He may have won but I could still rub it in that it wasn't as easy as he might have thought. I wiggled, trying to stand on my own feet and trying to get away from the damn helmet. He resisted at first, till he realized my distaste for his metal gear, then let me slip down and step a small distance away. "I can also get in and out, manually, fairly quickly. I timed myself at 45 seconds today.

"Very nice." He crossed his arms and inwardly drooled at what that did to his shoulders, chest and arms. "So, are you going to show me or shall we talk about it all night? I have a payout to collect."

"Testy." I took a few more steps from the stupid helmet and popped myself down there. I ran to the bedroom and grabbed a blanket and poofed back up. When he saw the blanket, his eyebrows shot up. "What's this?"

"Picnic?" I arched my neck and winked at him.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Bloody. Hell. I tried, guys, I really did. *Hangs head in shame* I tried to move this fuggin story ahead, but got snagged on a large Gracious Plenty, the fresh fellow. I had to wrap up the whole chase thing and it seemed Eric was a little full of himself and a little fluffed that she kept popping out on him, so he had to make her squirm a bit. Oye, so I inched forward on the bottom half in regards to plot. Next chapter, I SWEAR will have Pam, Alberik and others and more plot. I love your guys' witticisms and conjecture about plot. Some of you are spot on about some things. They (reviews) always make me laugh or smile, especially when I'm at work and not supposed to be reading them lol. So, the usual humdrum:I own nada, except Alberik and I made him look a lot like Eric so I can use him at my disposal. *tweedles moustache evilly* I have no beta. I have thought of finding one, but it seems like it would slow the process of posting a chapter up. Hugs and kisses. You guys rock. If you get a hankering for Eric as a Viking, just google "Eric Northman as a Viking". You'll see the one I used for inspiration. You'll know it when you see it. Yessss... **

Ch. 26

He was behind me in an instant. "What did I tell you about winking at me, Sookie?"

"Mmm...that you'd fuck me where I stand?"

"Precisely." He brought one hand around to my breast, another between my legs and began to rub them both in torturous circles. "Do you want me to fuck you right here, my little minxy fairy?"

"Maybe..." I panted out, turning my head toward him and pulling his head into my neck.

"Well" he scraped his fangs lightly across my skin, causing goosebumps, "normally I would be more than obliging, but in this case, you are mine now, to do with as I please." He circled his fingers over my nub several more times, and teased my nipple, making me mewl out and my knees shake a little. "And I have decided, not here."

"Argh!"

He chuckled and picked me up, in the same position we had been in-him behind me, and flew us up. Once past the canopy, he inverted us, so I was face up to the night sky and he was floating us on his back. I gasped. It was stunning-the feeling of floating, and being up so high in such a vivid night sky.

"It's so beautiful."

"Remind me to do this on a full moon. It's even lovelier." He began his ministrations between my legs again, but this time he used both hands. When I gasped in protest, he silenced me. "Sshh, you're safe Sookie. I promise, I won't drop you. Now just turn off your mind and enjoy what you feel."

I trusted him. He wouldn't let me fall or any harm to come to me. I was safe. I took a deep breath and let the calm wash over me. His sigh behind me let me know he felt it as well. He resumed his movements. One hand was around the front, and circled my nub, the other came from behind and slid through my folds. If we had been on solid earth, I probably would have come up off the ground at the almost invasive, yet delicious feeling. I sucked in a huge gulp of air and brought my hand around to the back of his neck. He continued his onslaught, very slowly, very gently, one hand sliding up and down through my folds, the other surrounded my clit with two fingers, making small circles.

"Open your eyes, Sookie. Keep them open." I didn't realize my eyes had closed; they popped open and the canvas of the black sky freckled with so many bright stars loomed before me so close I could touch it. It was a surreal feeling-like I was encased, surrounded on all sides. His fingers showed me no mercy. Teasing me with intense pleasure, but never giving me more. I grew restless. I rubbed my legs together and tried to reach behind me to grab his cock, "Ah, ah, ah, Sookie. You are not to touch me there unless I give you instruction to do so."

"Damn you." I growled out between clenched teeth.

"What's the matter my fairy, is this not pleasurable enough for you?" He sped up his hands and I cried out, arching my bottom into him. "Answer me, Sookie." Dirty talk in the heat of the moment was one thing, but to specifically say what I wanted required confidence I wasn't sure I had. "Answer me, or I won't give you what you want." He slowed his movements way down. Gah! I forgot the question, so I asked him to repeat it.

"I said, is this" he went back to his fast paced motions "not pleasurable enough for you?"

"Ahh, it is v-v-verry pleasurable."

"Then why do you wiggle and try to grab at me, as if you need more? If it were enough you wouldn't be able to think or move, you would be too busy coming for me." He ran his lips along my ear. "Tell me, Sookie, do you need more?" He teased my entrance with his fingers, running the tips along the outside, then paused with two fingers, right there, but not penetrating. "Sookie?" He pushed his fingers in one millimeter, then pulled them out again. I wanted to scream. "Do. you. need. more?" Each word was punctuated with the same millimeter finger tease.

"Yes. Yes, Eric, p-please. I need you inside me." I was rewarded with his fingers pushing deep inside me and his front hand continuing the circles on my clit. I cried out and grabbed at his hip, needing something to hold on to, as he plunged in and out of me.

"Is that what you wanted?"

"Mmm hhhmm." Wasn't he the one that told me to turn off my mind? How the eff was I supposed to do that with all his questions and talking?

He began whispering his old language in my ear and though I couldn't understood what he said, the tenderness in his voice contrasted the torture with his fingers. I let his sweet, husky timbre envelope me. I could feel my muscles clench and the spiral building up in my stomach. "Are you close, Sookie?"

I nodded. He stilled his hands and I whimpered in frustration. "No, not here. You aren't ready yet." He spun me to face him and he had the most vindicated, obnoxious look on his face, so pleased with himself for torturing me. It took everything I had not to slap him. Instead I clenched my jaw and silently vowed I wasn't going to break under this little teasing game he was playing. "Let's go to the cabin." How was this cocky monster the same man who just whispered tender things in my ear?

I seethed. He flew us down to the deck. When he came back for his Viking helmet, he must have turned the hot tub on, because the lights were on and it looked ready to go. He deposited me into the water and slipped in behind me. He rubbed my shoulders. "There, is that better? You seem so tense." I could hear his voice dripping with smirk, so I stayed silent. Admittedly it felt wonderful, so I enjoyed and relaxed into it while I plotted my revenge. He slipped a hand under the water and began massaging my lady bits again but used one hand to work knots out of my neck. Fine. I enjoyed it, moaned, panted and thrust into his hand, maybe a little exaggeratedly, for show. "Sookie, you didn't answer me. Is this better?"

"Mmm...yes. It feels heavenly."

"Are you getting close?"

"Yes." He stopped the hand beneath the water. I made no noise of protest, I didn't move.

"You're so quiet, my fairy. Are you mad?" He ran a hand over my breast, massaging it's weight and teasing the nipple, while running two fingers through my folds.

"Mmm...mad? No, why would I be mad?" Pinch, slide.

"I imagined maybe you didn't like your punishment."

Don't stiffen up, Sookie, do NOT stiffen up. Just bite your tongue, don't let your heart rate spike, he's toying with you. My fucking punishment?! I played gently with the hair on the arm that was extruding it's sweet torture on my breast, but resisted the urge to gouge his muscle out with my nails. "Punishment? No...I just thought you were tired from the chase, or maybe didn't feel up to it tonight and-"

He spun me to face him and impaled me on his full length, to the hilt, and I cried out in surprise, pain and pleasure. He growled at me, pulling my hair back. "Now _that_ is a falsehood, my sneaky fairy. You have felt 'IT' ", he pulled me up and sat me back down on him. Hard. "Many times tonight." I cried out again, rendered to jelly at his rough yet delicious handling of me. "Tell me, Sookie." He pounded into me twice more, then brought my head forward to look him in the eyes. "Did you say that just to goad me into giving you what you wanted?" Pound, pound. I didn't answer. Not on purpose, I just couldn't. He ground me against his pelvic bone several times, I almost came right then but of course, he stopped. It must have been some kind of sensory overload from an hour's worth of teasing, but my head was swimming. "Answer me, Sookie." Thrust thrust grind.

Wait-what was the question...oh yeah, did I? I wasn't sure. I thought I had said it just to be spiteful and hit below the belt, but maybe I had said it to have just this outcome. "It's possible." I mumbled out thickly, barely recognizing my own voice. He was making the tiniest thrusts in and out. I heard a strange rasping sound that I couldn't identify. Oh, it was me, breathing.

" 'It's possible' ?" He chuckled. How the fuck was he so in control right now? "Now, I know truly just how Fae you really are. Can never answer a fucking question directly." More slight, maddening thrusts. "You said it because you knew I would take you just. the. way. I. did." He slammed into me to emphasize each word, each time making sure he ground my clit against him, just so. I wanted to scream, but was captive to this sweet torment. He stilled his thrusts, but pressed my hips against him, so there was constant pressure on my nub, but I was powerless to move. "Didn't you?"

Oh hell, this was getting ridiculous, just give in and he'll make you come, you stubborn mule. "Yes, I suppose I did" I smiled sweetly at him. He raised an eyebrow at that, put his thumb on my clit, massaging it in a circular motion, latched on to a breast with his mouth and pounded into me no more than five times before I came unhinged. I came like a freight train, screaming his name, sobbing and gripping at his neck and shoulders, riding out the waves and rocking against him in what was officially the longest, most powerful orgasm I had to date. He held me to him while I shuddered, twitched and slowed my breathing.

He kissed my forehead, "I'll be back in a flash." Like I could move anyway. A second later, he picked me up out of the water and lay me down on the blanket he had spread out. He lay on top of me, supporting his weight and looked down at me. I reached up to touch his face as he placed himself at my entrance, pausing for permission. How he had hung on the last hour was a testament to his stamina. I nodded, then gasped at the feeling of him entering me, still super sensitive from moments before. He thrust deeply into me, never taking his eyes off mine.

Lifting my legs up around his shoulders he reached even deeper and I felt his head rub up against that magical spot. Again, I felt that mind-numbing, sensory overload wind it's way up through my core. His beautiful, smoldering eyes, trying to burn holes into mine and that feeling of each deep thrust he made, filling me so completely-It was like I was getting it from top to bottom.

I fought off the climax he was trying to give me because I knew he was close. Letting one leg slide down around his waist, I bucked up into his thrusts and pulled his face into my neck. Weaving my fingers into his hair, I breathed "Eric, drink from me." He groaned and I arched my neck. I felt it the second his fangs slid through my skin like butter. I immediately and violently came, clenching around his length, and I felt him swell up and explode inside me. He moaned out against my skin, gripping me around my shoulders and pulling me down onto him hard as he rode the last waves. He dropped his weight forward, pulling from the wounds, still making small thrusts. Every bit he drank from me only elongated my pleasure, so I was in no way wanting him to stop. He tried after a moment but I wouldn't let him. I willed him into continuing, though I wasn't sure if he felt it. I didn't feel weak at all, in fact, I felt better the more he took, but I wasn't sure if that was mental, physical or if it was some dopamine based delusion.

Finally, after I felt he had taken enough, I released the death grip I had on his head. He licked the wounds and lapped any missed blood. He kissed where he had punctured then pulled back to look at me worriedly, "Are you well?"

I gave him a rosy smile, "Mmm, yes, quite. Why?"

"I took more blood than I should have."

"Meh, I certainly feel fine, not weak at all." He gave me an odd look, but said nothing. He carried me into the house, placed me on the couch, zipped back out and was back, holding his helmet with a goofy grin. I couldn't help but laugh at him. He put it on.

"So, you cannot track me, mentally when I wear it?"

I closed my eyes, "Move around." I assumed he did, and other than sense his proximity through our whatever bond, I could not sense him. He must have taken it off, because suddenly I picked him up, upstairs.

"Now?" He called down.

"Yep." It disappeared so I assumed he put it back on. "Gone again."

He flew down the stairs, helmet on, a very old leather and metal belt, with sword attached around his waist and...black socks. Nothing else. I almost peed with laughter while he attempted to look innocent. He came closer as I rocked back and forth, holding my stomach. I wanted so much to call my phone to me, so i could take a picture, but couldn't stop laughing enough to do it. I wiped a few tears and settled down. The closer he got, the heavier I felt and my laughter died down. He stopped, understanding why I stilled. "These were mine, in my human life."

"They're lovely. Beautiful actually." I could see the intricate scrolling on the metal work. He held his sword out and I stood up, though kept my distance, and examined it. Wow, it really was stunning. I had a feeling I knew the answer to my next statement, "You made this."

"Yes." He smiled with pride at his sword and at me, for knowing, I thought.

"Solid iron?"

"Mostly. Some copper and tin, as well." I looked up and edged closer to his helmet. It had a matching detail, though not as intricate and I raised my hand to run my hand near it, but was compelled back. If I had really pushed it, I probably could have touched it, but I wasn't trying to go there.

If I blocked out the fact that he was naked and wearing black socks, he looked very much the Viking he was. He was ancient and rugged-I could picture him in battle, sword drawn, swinging his sword 'round in a fury. He would have been frightening and a formidable foe. I must have been giving him a strange look, because he gave me a sexy smile.

"What thought makes such a lusty look cross my woman's face?" When he talked old-fashioned like that, it did things to me.

"You look like a warrior." Apparently that made him a little lusty as well. He tossed his garb to the chair a few feet away and crushed me to him, kissing me. We had a little moment, but I broke it off, refusing to get sucked into another round of dirty, awesome, warrior sex-Knock it off, Sookie! I shook myself.

"Eric..." I practically whined.

He gave me that cocky look, "Is that you're way of saying you have a headache?"

"Psht-not hardly. You'll never hear me use that excuse." He was appeased by that. He sat on the couch and patted next to him, so I sat. He was still giving me a predatory look, "You would have made a wonderful Viking woman. You have all the attributes. You are fierce, loyal, strong, dangerous, loving."

"Thank you." I did feel honored. I knew he took his heritage very seriously and he was very proud, as he should be. For him to equate me to something he held in such high regard...was meaningful. We must have stared at each other like moon-eyed tweens for a minute. I broke us of our reverie and cleared my throat. "Phaedra."

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair, tensely. "Fucking Phaedra." My eyebrows shot up at his anger. "First tell me what you know of her, why you are asking me."

"Claude said, in Preston's ramblings he mentioned a Phaedra. But he had no clue who or what that was, neither did Claudine or I."

"She has had no business with fairies through the centuries, that I am aware of, which is why you have not heard of her. Though often, her reputation precedes her and I would imagine Niall will know of her."

"Okay. What's her reputation?"

"She calls herself a demigod, the illegitimate child of Pasiphaë and Dionysus, though historically her father was Minos, King of Crete. She is a follower of Dionysus, which is why it is believed she claims him as her father, though he is not.

More than likely, she had an affair of some kind with Dionysus when he sent a bull to kill her lover. The story becomes quite hazy and there are several versions. Regardless, after her introduction to Dionysus, she became quite mad and has stayed so since. She dabbles in every kind of magic and sorcery that crosses her whimsy. Most of the gods and demigods of the Pantheon have died out, the few that remain are solitary. They stick with their followers and no one else. She belongs to no one, and has no loyalties other than to Dionysus, herself and to chaos.

Often, she will appear to those worshiping him and lead them on of his second coming through her, then drive them to destruction. Her favorite, in the last thousand years has been rallying them, then exposing them to Christian fanatics- hence The Crusades, The Inquisition, The Salem Witch Hunts."

Just then, my phone rang. It was Claudine. I answered, excited but nervous. "Sookie. Claude is back."

"Okay, and?"

"Grandfather and everyone else is fine, but Preston is missing."

I let out a huge sigh. "Thank you. Did you mention Phaedra to anyone there?" I heard her ask Claude. "He said, no. He didn't know he was supposed to."

I sighed. "Okay, well I have some information on her and we may have to send Claude back to talk to grandfather. I have a theory about what could be going on." I thought about asking them to pop here, but I didn't want them knowing Eric's secluded hideaway, unless absolutely necessary. "Let Eric and I get ready to go back in to town and I'll get back with you."

I could hear her smirk over the phone. "See you next week then."

"You, hush. Give me a few hours though, because I want to make sure his brother is okay."

"Okay, bye."

I looked to him, to make sure he heard all of that and he nodded. "What is your theory, Sookie?" he asked, though I had a feeling he had the same one.

"Phaedra has probably, for whatever reason, latched on to Breandan and his people, during their time of disorder and struggle for power, and is fueling their fire against us."

"Unfortunately, I think you are right. She is probably enthralling him with her madness. If not all of the Water Fae."

"Why can The Council not control her?"

"She has never threatened the Supe World specifically, so has not posed a threat, I am guessing. Maybe now they will have to."

I rose to go grab a bite to eat before we left. He gathered his weapons and I gave him a wide berth. Once he stored them in a hidden safe behind a panel near the fireplace, I summoned my Fairy sword to me and handed it to him. He looked pleasantly surprised and looked it over. "This is iron." I nodded, my mouth full of yogurt and granola. "How are you able to wield it, then?"

"My trainer, Kvelin had it made for me, on my 16th birthday. He is Britlingen and had it made in his realm." The moment I said "trainer" and "he" Eric's hackles went up. He got steely-eyed and he clenched his jaw. I pretended not to notice and bit back a smile. "In fact he looks a lot like you. Isn't that odd? Anyway, he trained me for many years in all things physical, all the moves you've seen me do and many you haven't yet seen. And weaponry, he has taught me-"

He huffed. "I can teach you many more and more effective ones at that. I have a room with hundreds of swords and weapons."

I smiled gently at him and stroked his ego a little, "I would love that and I am excited to learn from you. I am always willing for a little sparring." I waggled my eyebrows at him and he calmed down.

"So, in reward for doing well, he had the sword commissioned for me. He always said I would be the most vulnerable from my own kind-well, he meant the Water Fairies. He was very intuitive, but he is Britlingen, so of course he would be." I hadn't meant that to irritate him, I meant it as a statement about their kind, but his ire went up again. I continued on, to distract him, "The iron nature of the sword, obviously could not be made in my realm. He took my blood, as well" At that, I thought he might come unglued. He held my sword outward now, as if mentally challenging an imaginary Kvelin. I touched his arm to calm him and he relaxed his pose. "And had it forged with a magic spell on the blade so that I could hold it and it could never be used by another Fairy on me. He would never say what or who made the spell so that it could never be broken. Smart."

"I would like to meet this, Kvelin" he practically spat his name.

"Now, now, Eric." I wound my hands around his waist. "You are my first. And only. You know that as a fact. Do you really need to beat your chest and challenge him, when I so clearly choose you?" He kissed me possessively and I submitted to it.

When I came up for air, "Okay, let's get going? Ooh and I need to bring the laptop. I want to show you and Pam the work that's been done on the bar. Or should we go there? I would rather do that, I hate feeling like I'm hiding."

"Let us see how Alberik is doing, first."

"And, do you think you could get a hold of Dr. Ludwig? I would love to ask her questions about us."

"I will call her. I am sure she will maker herself available."

We made our way upstairs and I made him swear we would only shower, nothing else. Surprise. He didn't keep his word. But I made him pay for his earlier "punishment".

**A/N 2: Mythology refs are loosely based on some truth, some I fudged for relevance.**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N-Arggghhhh! Having a hard time getting this posted. This is my third attempt. *shakes fist. Come on FF! ****So, hope this moves us forward a little bit. I was sad because I couldn't squeeze in Pammy girl talk and Dr. Ludwig, but it's coming. Okay, kisses to you all. Thank you to Viola1701e and VAlady for the pms letting me know this wasn't posting. For me it was showing, so I was confused. I've never had this problem here before so I wasn't sure what the deuce was going on. Love you all, thank you so much for reviews and for following this story. I won nothing **crosses fingers this works****

Ch. 27

On the trip to Pam's, Eric told me more about Phaedra. Apparently several centuries ago, he and Godric actually met her, in Greece. She had made a huge play for Eric and he denied her, having heard of her reputation. That and she wasn't at all attractive to him, he told me, and I snickered, "Riiight. Nice save." At the time, Godric took the heat for it, saying he forbid it; Eric was his. And she had to accept it. But that way at least, her anger was toward Godric. Eric voiced his concern, now that his maker was gone, was she attempting to get to him again, hence the abduction of Alberik via Breandan? There was so much to postulate and consider and until all involved parties were at bay, there was no way to know. I did know that crusty, crazy old bitch would see the pointed end of my sword, before she got Eric, but I kept that to myself for now.

Pulling in to Pam's neighborhood, then her driveway, I was surprised at what I saw. Not at the manicured lawns and modern stucco houses. More that there wasn't one signature thing separating her among the cookie cutter houses. I expected to see Edward Scissorhands topiaries or a lifelike Zombie statue in her front yard. Not sure why.

Eric entered a code and we slipped in, only given away by the beep of the security display. He called out to her and she appeared before us, in a lovely pastel pant suit. "Master. Sookie!" She hugged me to her, to my surprise. But then she wouldn't let go. And was holding me very tightly and it was hard to breathe.

Suddenly, I was on the floor on my butt and Eric had her pinned against the wall. She was struggling, all claws and fangs,

"Master, the fairy! I must have her! Let me go! How have you not drained her?!" She was looking at me, eyes wild, but she did not recognize me. Her pupils took up the entirety of her iris, her fangs were huge and she was drooling. I wanted a picture. The delicate graceful Pamela drooling! Oh she would be so pissed.

"Pamela! I command you to leave Sookie unharmed. Stay five feet away from her at all times. Understood?" She made one small nod and he let her go then stood by me, holding my arm.

"Well, that was unexpected."

"I'm sorry, lover. I did not anticipate that. Apparently your smell _has_ gotten stronger and I have become immune to it's strength."

She caged me, pacing back and forth stalking me like a large cat but keeping exactly five feet of distance. This was unnerving. I considered summoning my sword. I looked up at Eric, "Do you think I can try to influence her? Because we aren't going to get very far with this going on all night."

He thought it over. "Yes. If she is mad, I will handle it."

"Okay, I guess, if you can hold her or command her so she doesn't bite me, I just need to touch her somewhere, an arm or shoulder is fine." He pulled her over to the couch, sat her down, restrained her and again issued: "Pamela I command you not to bite or harm Sookie. She is going to try to influence you and calm you. Do not be afraid, she has done this with me before and it is pleasant." As an afterthought he added, "I forbid you to fight her influence." He looked at me and shrugged, as if to say 'Just in case'.

I touched her shoulder from behind, figuring I would be less tempting if I was out of sight. I did my ritual- breathing, focusing, centering and pushed it through her; taking her extreme hunger, and manic emotional state and replacing it with tranquility. I felt a strength and ease this time I never had before. I stayed like that for several minutes, till we were both mentally humming, in a meditative state. When I released my hand from her, I looked up at Eric and noticed he had a dreamy look on his face. "If it didn't work for her, Sookie" he almost slurred "It worked for me."

I walked around to look at Pam. Her eyes were heavy lidded, she seemed to be wobbling where she sat. She slowly turned her head to look at me "What was in that drink, Mister?" and mirrored Eric's dreamy, glassy eyed daze. I snorted. He came behind me and hugged me, then Pam stood up and hugged my front. Oookay...this was getting a little awkward. And it was a little hard to breathe.

"Uhm, hey guys? So glad you feel all googley, and I hate to break up this love-in, but I'm feeling a little weirded out right now."

Eric laughed harder and longer than seemed warranted, peeled Pam off me and sat her back down. She didn't even seem to have heard me. "Lover, now I know your powers have gotten stronger. That was some very powerful influence."

Pam laughed softly to herself, at what I wasn't sure. This was all very funny but I was getting a little nervous because this was uncharted territory. It had never worked this well before, let alone on two people at once. Eric rubbed my arms up and down, "My little fairy has much magic" and he booped my nose with his finger.

"Okay, big boy. You sit down too." He laughed and plopped backwards on to the couch.

"What in holy fuck have I done? Now I have to babysit you two punch drunk vampires?" I debated calling Claudine, when a voice from the doorway startled me.

"You have enchanted them with your magic, Bergljót. It is stronger than you realize." Once I peeled myself from the ceiling, I was immediately on guard. Resting himself confidently against the door frame was Eric's brother. I was unsure if he would be blood crazed as Pam had been, not to mention he was still weak from his ordeal. Without even thinking about it, I called my sword. All showered and clean from dirt, caked blood and wounds, he looked so much like Eric, I felt like I was seeing things. He was slightly less tall and slightly less broad-shouldered and the angles of his face were not as exaggerated, but otherwise, he looked like he was literally Eric's blood brother. Except for his still greyish hadn't moved but he was eyeballing me pretty intently.

"Brother!" Eric cheerfully shouted and shot up from the couch to stride over to him, still with the goofy look plastered on his face. He followed Alberik's eyes that were fixed on me, then noticed me with my sword. He froze, and growled. "Brother. Have you threatened her? She is mine. You will control yourself or I will control you."

Oh, thank you-he was back, I said silent thanks. Alberik pushed off the frame and stood very still, "I mean your fairy no harm, brother. She saved me. I will protect her with my life. She is my Bergljót." They stared at each other a while longer, Eric's eyes apprising him, Alberik looking as innocent as he could to convince his brother he meant me no harm. I was sold by his words and demeanor, so summoned my sheath and belt and stashed my sword on my hip.

"How is it her scent has not affected you?" Eric seemed unsure, or just cautious enough, which I appreciated.

Alberik shrugged. "I do not know. It is possible, from what you have told me of the process it took for her to find me, mixing something with your blood, that it has rendered me immune, like it has you?" Shit, this supported the possibility of a bond with Alberik.

I paced, "Can we call Dr. Ludwig? We have a lot of questions that I hope she will have answers to." Eric had his phone out and was dialing.

Suddenly, from the couch, Pam piped "Sookie, I love your sword. May I see it?" I looked to Eric, for his opinion, but she caught my glance. "I am getting better, no need to coddle me from sharp objects like a child."

Eric nodded, "She's still under my command not to harm you." I handed it to her. Alberik edged closer, to look at me and the sword. He sat next to Pam.

"So you are feeling better, then?" I asked. "I am slowly recovering. I have had a lot of blood in the last day which has helped immensely. The silver has to work it's way out of my system. Only then will I regenerate my hand and my fangs." His eyes shone with bitterness and I didn't blame him one bit. Eric was talking to someone on the other line in his usual curt, bossy tone.

I came to Alberik and grabbed his hand. "We will punish all who are responsible for this." Which reminded me. "Can you tell us everything you saw?"

He nodded and gestured to Eric. "This is the first I felt well enough to have a complete conversation. I was waiting until you two were here." I heard Eric end his call. He came to me and draped his arm around me waist, a little possessively, I thought, but I didn't mind.

"She will be here within the next few hours. She is assisting in a Were birth", he scrunched his nose up like he could smell them "but dogs deliver relatively quickly." Pam, who had been very quiet, handed me my sword and went to the kitchen. I guess she was still under the calming influence. Alberik and Eric chatted about his health. I looked around the house and took in Pam's décor taste. Everything was white-furniture, carpet, though the walls were a pale blue. Quite the opposite from Fangtasia. Not that I expected red or black based on how she dressed, but the all white surprised me. She returned with three glasses of blood and a pitcher, I assumed for Alberik, setting it down on the coffee table. Eric sat in a chair opposite the couch and pulled me onto his lap. I swallowed a sigh at his claiming rituals, then thought, if there were another woman who looked just like me in the room, I might be just as possessive.

She poured Eric a glass but he declined it. At Pam's and Alberik's raised eyebrow, he said "I have fed tonight."

"But Eric, it is Elite." I took that to mean it was special or extra yummy.

"What I have surpasses Elite by a thousand fold. Anything else tastes like dreck." It made me feel strange that I was being talked about like filet mignon and yet slightly proud. Weird. It didn't go unnoticed that both their eyes looked a little hungry and envious, so they both hurriedly tossed back their blood.

"So, brother. Tell us everything you recall, everything you saw."

He was in New York, at what he thought was a business dinner. He ordered a special blend of blood and when it arrived, it had been drugged with fairy blood and something else. He awoke in a dark, drippy cave, where he was kept and was tortured for weeks. That sounded like what I had heard and read of The Water Fairies' land. They drained him for his blood, though he wasn't sure why, then they injected him with the silver and cut off his hand. But they also tortured him with fairies-they were all around him, not masking their scent in any way. They would even have orgies in front of him and tear their skin to expose their blood to him, of course, not giving him a drop, just to torment him. "I believe they were ingesting my blood, which is what instigated the orgies and biting of each others flesh."

I gasped. "No fairy would ever purposely take vampire blood!" All three looked at me, insulted.

Eric said quietly, "I beg to differ." and looked at me meaningfully.

I blushed beet red, much to his and Pam's delight, and corrected myself. "I mean no offense. What I meant was, fairies look at vampires as an enemy, for obvious reasons. To take their blood would be demeaning _to them_, not me. They look down on vampires, as most Supes do of anyone outside their species. Like you do with Weres."

"Well, they were crazed and drunk and I could smell my blood in them. Whether they knew it or not. Maybe they were drugged as I was."

"That would go along with Phaedra's m.o." Eric said more to me than anyone else.

Alberik choked on his blood. "Did I just hear you correctly? Fucking Phaedra?!" I laughed a little. That was the second time I had heard that. It's like that was her full name. Eric explained our theories about her involvement. Alberik knew of her but Pam did not, so he briefed her. While he did that, I asked Alberik to describe every fairy he saw to me. None sounded familiar, other than Preston. He said he never heard Breandan's name mentioned and his description sounded like they were all Water Fairy. I just was glad he didn't describe anyone else from The Palace. It wasn't until a few days before I came for him that he was moved to the room I found him in and he couldn't describe his arrival there because he was teleported.

"Why would you be taken from one spot to another, especially somewhere on The Palace grounds. That's beyond the reach of the Water Fairies." I hoped. No one had any theories because none made sense. He didn't have much more information than that; nothing that gave us any other clues about what was being planned and by who.

"Will you tell me about the potion that was used to find me?" He had a far away look, staring at the blood in his glass, as he swirled it around. I looked to Eric, silently asking permission to divulge any concerns about a possible bond, he nodded.

"My cousins and I conjured you with our magic. That is, an image of your location. We weren't sure if it would work or how we would get to you, but we thought between all of us, we might recognize your surroundings. Though I didn't know at the time, I used a fairy binding potion to draw your essence out of Eric's blood, since you share a maker and we had nothing personal of yours. When I mixed the potion in to the bowl with his blood, both he and I lit up. Then, when I retrieved you, only he was able to see my journey, not my cousins. We are now suspecting that we are bonded in some way."

Eric added, "We feel each other's presence and become anxious when separated, as in a blood bond, but we do not feel each other's emotions, other than briefly when sharing blood."

Pam and Alberik's heads snapped up and looked back and forth between us. "Are you bonded?" Pam looked relieved and I wasn't sure how I felt about that.

"No."

"Not yet." I added.

Eric's head snapped to me with a look of astonishment, then briefly, joy, but he collected himself. Hmm. "But we have shared blood twice."

"Now the concern is, are we all three bonded because the blood I added the potion to, had all of our elements in it? Especially now that we see you are not affected by my fairy scent, just like Eric."

"But I was the night you saved me. I would have attacked you." He seemed to think aloud.

"Brother, I would attribute that to intense starvation. But also, her cousins, full fairies, had just been in her apartment. You could easily have been under the influence of their scent." Alberik seemed to agree with that, as did I. We kicked around other ideas and theories, but were ultimately at a loss until Dr. Ludwig's arrival.

I showed Pam and Eric the photos of Fangtasia and we agreed, if there was time we would go see it tonight, in person. I got their input on Herveaux's questions. I asked if they thought it wise for me to meet the crew there tomorrow during the day. Eric didn't like it, but agreed I could take care of myself and took pity on me for going a little stir-crazy at doing so little. He consoled himself by putting a call in to Herveaux and telling him I would be there, but I was to be protected with his life if trouble arose then hung up on him. I looked at him sharply. "He owes me many favors." How he interacted with people sometimes, just floored me.

I excused myself to get some water. As I was filling a glass, Alberik appeared right behind me and I flinched. "Balls! Do you guys take classes on sneaking up on people?"

"Yes, actually, I have a badge, would you like to see it?" He joked and I snorted at his unexpected come back. My laughter died down as I realized the intensity of his stare. His eyes were so much like Eric's, maybe just a touch more grey. The hair on the back of my neck stood up and I felt a tickling at the back of my brain. Was this bitch trying to glamour me? Now I was curious to his motives. I was pressed up against the counter and he was inches from me-the proximity was making me nervous because I wasn't sure of his intentions. He may be Eric's brother, he may be almost as hot, and we may be sort-of bonded but that was all he was going to get from me. Was he expecting something else? His eyes bore into me, "Sookie, do you love my brother?"

He _was_ trying to glamour me! "I care for him very much. Beyond that, it's none of your business. If you have more questions, you will ask them to me in front of Eric, since I am his." I knew very well Supe propriety rules and I knew damn well he did too. "And if you're trying to glamour me, it won't work."

He looked at me in shock, then admiration. "Pardon me for the attempt, but I have never seen my brother so taken with anyone before. I wanted to make sure you didn't have him enthralled or have a spell on him. Though the more I know you, the more I understand why he is so taken with you. You are quite an extraordinary woman. I am honored to have you as my sister." How did we reach that relationship? He kissed me lightly on the forehead, then my nose, then my lips, then Eric kicked the swinging door in so hard, it left a huge crack on the wall. Uh-oh.

For the second time tonight, a vampire was pinned by their throat to the wall because of me. Except this one was much more in danger of meeting his final death. "Explain yourself. Now. Before I rip off the other hand." Eric's body was rigid, his voice tight with rage. He was holding Alberik up like he weighed no more than a balloon. I could have come to his defense but I knew defending him right at this moment would make it worse, so kept my mouth shut. Pam came in, looked between the three of us and narrowed her eyes at me. Thanks for the vote of confidence, Pammy.

Alberik seemed unfazed. "I came to question your woman, brother, nothing else. I foolishly thought I could glamour her. I was concerned she would have a spell on you as I have never seen you so enamored with anyone before. Once she set that record straight, I welcomed her as my sister, then kissed her. That is all."

"Sookie?" He barked at me.

"Yes, Eric, that is all that happened."

He dropped Alberik. "Leave us." And they were gone. He had me pressed up against him, and was rubbing himself all over me before the door swung shut. "Eric? Are you okay?"

"Mmm...I am now."

Who could resist that? I smiled. "What brought that on?" He had his face in my neck and his hands on my bottom pulling me into his hard length. Okay. Uhm, wow.

"I heard your words, that you cared for me. Then you put him in his place by telling him to mind his own business. Most women would be attracted to him, scared of him or try to impress him because of his relationship to me. And that you claimed yourself as mine and told him to only question you further, with me present." He was kissing my neck and collarbone. "That made me extremely happy. And horny." He emphasized by thrusting into me and squeezing my bottom. I was really trying to resist a dry hump session here in Pam's kitchen but he was making it difficult. "I heard him call you sister, and in theory, I should not have minded the kiss, but seeing it in front of me was something else. I wanted to crush him into a fine powder." He put my bottom up on the counter and I wrapped my legs around his waist. Sliding his hands up to my neck he held my head on either side and kissed me all over my face. I understood his need to mark me. It was his primal need to claim me, once his claim was challenged, whether founded or not. I offered him my neck, though I didn't think he would take it, since he's so insistent about not taking too much.

To my surprise and delight, I felt a pinch as he slid his fangs in. He drew on the wounds and I felt it right between my legs. He slipped his hand down the front of my pants and slid his fingers between my folds. He rubbed the heel of his palm up against my nub, while he inserted his fingers as deep inside me as they could go. I tried hard to be quiet, but honestly wasn't sure I succeeded. I came quickly and he drowned out my cries, mostly, with his kiss. I think a total of a minute had passed. I felt slightly ashamed that we couldn't keep our hands off each other for more than an hour, then thought better of it. My vampire was marking me, drinking from me and he made it pleasurable for me. A symbiotic relationship, nothing shameful. The end. He cleaned up my neck, and stared at me while he licked his fingers. I blushed but didn't look away. "To be continued." He purred at me.

Pam came in, sniffed, then rolled her eyes. "Great, now my kitchen smells like fairy pu-"

"Pamela. What do you want?"

"If I answer that question, you'll have me by my neck again. Ludwig called. She says to meet her at Fangtasia within the hour. We better take separate cars, what with hot pants making us all nuts. Speaking of, we should get Alberik laid. Especially once he gets a whiff of her." She frowned. Neither attempt to embarrass me had worked.

"Enough, Pam. Go. We will be out in a moment."

Once she was gone, "Now, where were we?"

"You were offending my delicate sensibilities by licking your fingers in a lewd gesture and eyefucking me."

"Ah, yes. But, Sookie, joking aside. Your feelings for me, they are true?"

I got shy and toyed with his hair, but I wasn't going to avoid it, as I had promised myself. I took a deep breath. "Eric, I meant what I said. I care for you. More than I ever have for someone, other than family. And I don't know what love is or feels like. I just know I want to be with you. I want to be yours and I want you as mine. Anything beyond that is...irrelevant."

That look of joy flashed across his face again and he looked like a little boy for a second. "Good. I feel the same. When you said we weren't bonded 'yet', does that mean you are seriously considering it?"

"Of course. I wouldn't say something like that and not mean it." He kissed me hard and passionately. When he broke the kiss, I slid down off the counter, to avoid any possibility of round two. I adjusted my clothing and hair and splashed some water on my cheeks. "Do I look like I've just been fed from and fucked?"

"Yes, you do. It's a good look for you." He rubbed up against me again.

"Oh no. Uh uh. Let's go." He protested as I pulled him out with me. Two sets of vampire eyes met us in the living room, scenting the air then looking at Eric and me with envy. With a smug look at them over his shoulder, he held my arm and led us out.


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: Another installment my lovelies. Hope this answers some questions. This was kind of a light chapter and the next one will be kind of serious but lemony and sweet. Theoretically. We'll see, mwuahaha. Sorry, I'm getting a lil slap happy because it's late and I think I'm getting the plague or whatever the deuce is going around work for the umpteenth time. A random thought that dawned on me the other day, and if I were smart, I would pretend I was so cool, I planned it this way, but I like to be real like that...This story is about Eric getting wrapped up in fairy politics! In contrast (obviously) to Bookie always getting wrapped up in vampire politics. Notice, Eric doesn't bitch about being involved, though. He's such a trooper. LOL-that occurred to me and I'm like, holy poopsticks, it's a role reversal *facepalm...awkward silence. So, thank you as always for all your love, input and reviews. I do occasionally use some of the wants and suggestions, if you haven't noticed already. Where applicable, anyway. Yep, so thanks again-you guys make me laugh, cry, smile and vomit sparkles and rainbows. No beta, I own nothing. Toodles.**

Ch. 28

The ride to Fangtasia was quick since Eric and Pam decided there was a race. Of course he won, but he let her think she had a chance a time or two, when he would lag behind. It seemed a little ridiculous that she would think a mini van could even keep up with a Corvette's low speeds, but Pam was competitive, like me. We went in the back way and settled into Eric's office. Pam and Alberik arrived two minutes later.

"Oh, are you finally here? I thought I might have to send a search party out..."

"Stick it, Master." She drawled. "If I had my Audi, you would have been sucking my tail pipe."

"That's cute, Pam. I could beat you on a skateboard with one wheel. I will always win."

I rolled my eyes and looked at Alberik, who was totally unimpressed with their banter and was checking his cell phone. These guys didn't waste time in getting synced back in with day to day life.

"Okay, well you two can stand here and measure each other's dicks to see whose is bigger, I am going to look at the progress in the bar."

Alberik barked out a laugh and Eric replied, "Pam's will always be bigger, since she has the benefit of prosthetics on her side."

As we left the office, she smiled from ear to ear. "Don't you forget it. Who needs the beastly burden of a man, when there are so many _better_ replications of their _one_ redeeming quality, right Sookie?" She was still trying to embarrass me.

"Uhm, no. I will disagree with you all day long, on that one, Pam. Though I have no experience in prosthetics, I would wager there is no replicating Eric in any form or function." His chest puffed way out, he gave me a panty melting smile and a boastful look to Pam.

He opened his mouth, but she beat him to it, "Says the virgin. She has nothing to compare it to. Now, about this wager, Sookie..."

"Ack! Nope."

"Pamela, that is enough. Cease this talk now."

"But I can show her all the ways only another woman knows her body better than a man ever could-" Eww. Now I was blushing.

"Enough! Since you will not heed me, and insist on torturing Sookie, you will be punished in a manner as I see fit."

She started to retort, then thought better of it, but she didn't look like she believed him about the punishment. We stopped talking to peruse the new digs.

"This looks good."

That was an understatement, Pam. It looked amazing. The ceiling was completely done in stylized, silver-looking tin ceiling tiles over the entire club. Smoked mirrors were over the booths. It actually looked classy. The dance floor did have a slight teardrop shape and was now red. Not a bright, flat paint slopped over the surface, but the wood was actually stained and looked very nice actually. They had re-covered the fabric of the booths from red faux leather to a heavy grey and red patterned brocade. I looked at him to see his reaction, he looked pleased.

"Wow, all of this was your design, your choices?" He nodded, still taking it all in, looking for any flaw, no doubt. "It looks incredible. You have quite a flare for design."

He kissed my forehead. "Thank you. I enjoy it. It was your idea however."

"Yes, but I never could have fathomed it to look so insanely awesome. You took a hokey concept and made it understated and classic."

"I know what I like." He gave me a heated look, that made me feel a little warm. We made a list of the things I would bring up to the contractor tomorrow.

Pam disappeared and returned with Dr. Ludwig in tow. I hadn't seen her in at least a decade and she looked exactly the same-tiny and wrinkled. In fact, the last time I did see her, we were close to the same height. My grandfather had called her to evaluate my powers.

She ignored the others and came immediately to me, "Hello, little halfling girly. You've grown since I last saw you at your great-grandfather's knee, giving him many a gray hair." Alberik snorted. She walked around me examining me like a prize pig, occasionally poking or touching me. I looked over her at Eric, the top of her head barely reached the top of my breasts, who was regarding us curiously. "My, you have progressed nicely. I see your power has increased, though is still not fully utilized."

"Hello, Dr. Ludwig. It is nice to see you."

"Hmm?" She looked up at me, distracted and confused that the pig spoke. "Oh, yes." She looked at my hair and at my fingers. "I told Niall there would be great power in you. I like being proven right."

She had? No one told me that. I looked at Eric sharply and she took notice. "You've had this one's blood?" and gestured to him. I nodded, shocked that she knew after being near us for all of 45 seconds. "That's the source of your increased magic. Keep it up, it will only help. Why haven't you bonded yet?" My mouth fell open and three others around the room followed suit. Did she know what I ate today and what color my underwear were, too? "Hello?" she snapped her fingers at me as if I were slow.

I looked down at her, then up at Eric, then down at her again. "We were considering it, but there's been quite a bit going on lately that took precedence. It's not exactly something we were rushing into, after knowing each other for only a few days."

"Oh bull. You two are fated, why put it off? And as far as there being a lot going on, get used to that, it will be a constant."

Silence for a full minute.

"Did you just say we are fated, Doctor?"

She looked over at him, directly acknowledging him for the first time. "I did, Northman. I'm disappointed at you that you have not bonded her to you already. I expected you to know better. You have been foretold of this event, have you not?"

He paled, if that was possible, his eyes went round and to his credit he looked very shocked. Lucky for him, because if he hadn't, I was going to give him quite a talking to, if he knew something like that and didn't tell me. His voice was very quiet and far away, "That was so many centuries ago...I thought it was a dream and no one ever knew of it but me."

"It _was_ a dream, Vampire. Have you not heard of prophetic dreams?" He looked down at her and nodded, still in a state of disbelief, then looked at me with a strange look I couldn't identify-was it awe?

She looked between the two of us, "You two need to hash some things out, it seems." She hiked herself up on a stool with surprising agility. "Who do I have to tip to get a scotch?" Pam went behind the bar, poured her a drink, also heating some bloods for her and Alberik.

"So, is this why, lately he can take substantial amounts of blood and it has no draining effects on me? In fact, the more he took today, the better I felt." Eric looked at me, half surprised, half pleased at that little tidbit.

"Most likely it is an effort to encourage the blood sharing, to get you two to bond. It wouldn't surprise me if you said you were drawn to have him drink from you, from the start. And if you wanted to drink from him, in return. The magic in you two is strong and heavily woven together-the physical part is all that is missing. Fate is pushing for it, but you are fighting it."

Again I couldn't hide my shock. I guess now I understood why I was always drawn to his fangs, and him, like a moth to a flame.

"Is this all something my grandfather knows, Dr. Ludwig?"

"I am not going to speak for him. But in his defense, he may have had specific instructions from The Council or The Ancient Pythoness, for all I know. If he sent you here, he had to at least be guaranteed your safety by someone. He would not have sent you in here unprepared and vulnerable. Tell me, was there any protection spell cast over you before you came?"

"I have been trained well in defense, all my life, and can handle my own safety, thank you." I didn't like the implication there was some omnipotent power or person guarding me. I could defend myself. "And yes, Grandfather masked my scent before I came. Though actually, I forgot about that until now...Is that still a factor? Am I still being masked, or..?"

"I have a feeling there was no spell needed. You were destined for him, Sookie. Fate would not allow harm to come to you by his hand. Or fangs." she snickered at her own joke. "Speak with Niall. He will tell you the truth, or most of it, now that you know to ask the right questions."

Pam snorted, "Fairies."

"Why is that one" she gestured to Pam "not chomping at the bit to drain you now?"

"I influenced her and her urge to eat me hasn't returned. Yet."

Ludwig's eyebrows shot up, "Nice. That is a handy trait to have around vampires. And why does that one" she jerked her head toward Alberik "also not attack you, yet smells of you?"

"That is one of the reasons we asked you to come." I explained the ritual and potion we used to find him while she resumed poking and prodding me with utensils from her bag. When I finished, asking her if she knew just how we were all tied together, she said, "You already know the answer to your question, dear. Whatever magic you used to extrude Alberik's blood from Northman's, clearly bonded all three of you in some way. Though, what way is to be determined by you all. Alberik has not directly had your blood so he may only be bonded by default because of his tie to Eric."

"Eric's brother, can you sense Sookie?"

"No." She nodded. "See? He is only tied to you indirectly, thankfully enough to be immune to your scent but nothing more. Which is good since we do not know how that might affect a permanent vampire bond."

"Sheriff, you are immune to her as well as her cousins?"

"Yes." How the hell did she know this shit?

"Eric's brother?"

"I am only immune to Sookie, as best we can tell. I had a strong reaction to her cousins' scents. But that was last night and I was starved at that moment."

She nodded again. "You should test that out once, if your cousins are willing." and knocked back her drink. Wow, for someone so small, she could hold her liquor.

"Do you know anything about Phaedra?" Dr. Ludwig's head rotated around so slowly and completely, she looked like an owl. "Why do you ask?" She was very tense now.

I sighed, and filled her in on the rest of the story I had omitted when telling her about Alberik, which meant she now knew everything that was going on with the fairies, at The Palace and with my vampires. I wasn't overly comfortable with outsiders having that information. But I knew she knew a lot of things about a lot of Supes and she seemed to be pretty straight forward, more so than my own Grandfather. Eric also told her about his run-in with her years ago.

"She is a dangerous and completely insane. This is not good news if she is involved in the fighting amongst your kind. She probably feels the need to cause more chaos and take an entire species down with her. Does Niall or The Council know of this?"

"No. Claude went to our realm, to make sure our grandfather was safe, once we learned of Preston's treachery, but he never mentioned Phaedra to him. He didn't know it was relevant. And Grandfather has forbid me to come there. Apparently there have been more direct attacks on The Palace and he wants me to stay here, under watch of my cousins."

"More likely, to stay under the protection of your vampire."

I really wanted some answers from dear old Grandad. If all this Fate stuff, me being destined for Eric business was true, why wouldn't he just tell me, instead of the ruse he concocted. Oops, I had tuned out for a minute.

"...And most of this would fit her style. Breandan's sudden madness, and sudden push to seize power over the Sky Fairy. If she had a thing for our Sheriff, here, she probably encouraged him to approach Eric, telling Breandan it was to get him on their side, but truthfully wanting him for herself, once she learned of Godric's passing. When Northman declined, she probably told him to kidnap either Pam or Alberik to blackmail him, knowing he would do anything to get them back. Also, the madness of the fairies torturing Alberik and reeking of his blood-fairies would never intentionally drink vampire blood. She had to have drugged them. Or Breandan, if he's that far gone."

I gave you Eric a "told you so" look.

"I'm surprised she didn't approach you directly, offering to rule all of Faery by her side, while you drained the entire population. She's that mad."

"Breandan offered something similar. He offered me an endless supply of fairies on tap. Or my own personal hybrid. That was one of the first red flags that went up."

Ugh, that made me want to throw up.

"I normally try to stay as far away from Supe politics as possible. But now knowing Phaedra is involved, this cannot be taken lightly and could have a ripple effect on all of us. I will go through the proper channels and contact The Council. I should get going now. Hopefully, I have answered some questions for you. Northman, you will get a bill. You may call on me again, if any other health related issues arise." As almost an after thought, "Alberik, you look much better than when I last saw you. Are you feeling well?"

"I am."

"Good, then I will leave. Nice to see you, little halfling fairy, stay out of trouble, though I doubt that will ever happen." She cackled. "You two have things to talk about and a bond to make, so stop delaying. When Fate is involved, there is a reason. No questioning it." She slid off the stool and gathered her bag.

On a whim, I asked, "Doctor, do you know if a vampire could function and move around normally in Fae, if he went during the night period and if he was hidden during the day?"

She looked back at me with a knowing glance and a cocked brow, "Its possible, if he had the right connections, he could do a lot of things that might just surprise us all." She winked at me. "Northman. Pam. Alberik." She nodded to them, then walked out the back door.

"Sookie, why did you ask that?" Eric asked softly.

"Well, we know now, that vampires can survive in Faery and don't explode upon arrival, or some such myth, as evidenced by Alberik. So, the next logical thought to me, are the terms for survival there, if one were to go willingly, I mean."

"I see. Did you have plans for 'one' to go there?"

"I was merely asking, Eric. Just educating myself on all the unknowns..."

Alberik and Pam laughed.

"What?"

"Fairies. You don't say 'yes' or 'no', but 'I was merely asking'", Alberik mimicked my voice, "when you were clearly asking her for a reason."

"You know what?" I was getting a little tired of hearing it, honestly. Or maybe I was just getting cranky. "I don't say 'Vampires' all shmarmy, every time the wind blows and you drop fang or flare your nostrils at me, which is all the time. You guys can all kiss my fairy ass."

The Trouble Twins, as I now called them in my mind, looked at each other, then at me, then pretended to advance on me, presumably to kiss my ass, but Eric swooped me up. "Lips off. And fangs and hands, Pamela. The only one kissing this delicious ass is me."

He made a big production of tickling and groping me, knowing I was irate and trying to lighten my mood. It worked, though I was getting a little aroused by it. I swear, I could get aroused watching him make a ham sandwich. Pam started to get a little fidgety and anxious. "Pam, are the effects starting to wear off?"

"I believe so." She looked guilty and paced.

Alberik offered a solution. "Apparently, some fun is in store for my brother and his woman. Let us be scarce. I am in need of some sustenance, Pamela, of both kinds. Do you have any friends we can show a good time?"

"I do. Blonde, brunette or red-head?"

"Do I have to choose, or can we have one of each?"

She giggled merrily and he leered at her. Good grief. They barely said goodbye, their arms slung around each others' waist, heads together, plotting, thick as thieves.

"Speaking of sustenance, lover, I need to feed you. You need your strength if we are to bond. Tonight." He eyed me meaningfully and I gulped in anticipation.


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Wow, what can I say? I'm sorry it took so fuggin long for this update-the longest I've taken in a while. I literally had writer's block. It was awful. It wasn't for lack of trying, I assure you. For a solid week, I sat in front of the computer, would tap some nonsense out, then delete it completely. It's about honoring the story-going where the characters would go, not crap that just poops itself out because it's easy. I even got this chapter done, then deleted the last half. It was giving me a migraine, I was stressing it so bad. I finally got my shit together, womaned (not manned) up and finished to my satisfaction. Anyhoo, now that I'm done whining, I have some great news. I actually qualified for a Fangie Award?! Holy shit cakes. When I was notified, I thought it was a joke lol. I am up for the Lafayette Reynolds Award-Best AU. I am honored to even be on this plane of existence with the other contenders, so that alone is enough for me. **

**You can look at all the awards and contenders here: http(colon forward slash forward slash) (forward slash)fangiegdocs**

**And vote here: http****(colon forward slash forward slash)**eSurv. org?u=Fangies2013 

**The whole lack of being able to just type the damn link here still confuses me, so I copy pasted what they sent in my pm. You have to copy paste in the address window, then put colons : and forward slashes / between characters. I hope that works. If not, you can just google 2013 Fangreaders Awards. If I am supposed to say "go vote for me" that's not going to happen as I will never, ever do that. Vote for your opinion on the best. As I said, the others in the same category are awesome, incredible authors, so just to be listed with them completely floors me. As always, thank you so much for all your patience, love and comments. You are all my muses (can you pluralize that word?). Many apologies for the delay. I have no beta and I own no characters, except for a few I sprinkled here and there. Smooches to you all.**

Ch.29

We were alone in the bar and I suddenly found myself pinned to the bar from behind, caged by his arms.

"So, Lover" he made sure to purr into my ear, "How shall I feed you?"

"Mmm, what are my options?"

"I can take you out to eat." He nipped at my neck. "I can cook for you." He kissed right behind my earlobe and I felt a flood of warmth between my legs. "Or I can fuck you right here on this bar and we'll review the options again, afterward." He squeezed my hips and pushed his crotch against my bottom, as if I didn't already know he was hard and ready to follow through with option number three.

I wiggled my hips against him. "Uhhm, all of those sound feasible." I quickly dodged under his arms, then hopped up to sit on a stool, trying to clear my head of lust. He looked at me woefully, till I opened my arms and gestured for him to come in for a hug. When he did, I lay my head on his chest, "But I want to talk about everything we've learned tonight. And I know damn well, no matter how much you promise to keep on topic, you're going to distract us if we are home alone."

He gave me the oh-so innocent look,"Moi?"

"Oui, vous." My French retort only fueled him on as he pushed into my hips with his crotch.

"See! That's what I mean."

"I can't help it lover, when you speak French-" he broke off and started kissing my hand and up my arm, ala Gomez Adams.

I giggled, "Okay, okay, you're already trying to sidetrack me-let's go." Truthfully, it wouldn't take much for me to cave and forgo eating and talking for a round of monkey sex. After a little more teasing, we headed out. I felt bad-since I came in to his life he hadn't had any time for doing his sheriffly duties. I vowed, barring any fairy world collapse, we would come in tomorrow and I would help Pam and he would get his things done. Once we had locked up the bar, "Oooh ooh! Can I drive? Pleasepleaseplease!"

He looked at me sideways, but chuckled and handed me the keys. "Well, I guess two years was long enough to have her. Just give me enough time to order another one before you wreck us." He made a huge show of pretending to send Pam a text to order him one.

"Oh, hush. You taught me the other day and I've been watching you-I'm a good pupil."

"Indeed." Eyebrow waggle.

"Speaking of which, don't forget, you said you'd show me some things with weapons and sparring." I reversed us, put it in first gear fairly smoothly.

"Any time, Sookie. You just let me know when and I will get my swords together."

"Okay, well get them ready. Maybe tomorrow night after work?" He looked so excited I thought he might leave me in the car right now to go gather his swords. Taking off from a stop light, I made a little grinding sound in between gears and I saw him clench his jaw. What I really wanted was to take this kitten out on the open highway and haul ass. Getting back on current topic, "Okay, your dream. Spill it."

"In my human life I had always been intuitive. I saw things before they would happen. Examples would be dreaming that a neighboring tribe plotted to invade ours, that a family member unexpectedly died or that I would have an especially successful hunt. The visions only came to me in dreams, though, never in a vision while I was conscious like some might have. I never told anyone and just used it to my advantage, when I could. Though, often, it was a trait that haunted me. Once I was turned, that ability went away and I was glad to be rid of it. Knowing that a dream could come true made sleeping very difficult. I never knew if a dream was going to be just that-a silly nocturnal dream, or something vital to my survival. It had become a nightmarish burden. However about a couple hundred years after becoming a vampire, I dreamed that Frigg came to me. I was a believer in the mythology of the era, in my human life. Frigg was Odin's wife and had powers of prophecy. She came to me and alluded that I was meant for much more in my new life. I was now immortal because They, The Gods, made it so. There was a woman who I must make mine-protect and guide. She would come to me, but Frigg never said when or how or who this woman would be. Or what our purpose together was. Protect from what? Guide how? In the beginning, I put much faith in Her words. I was on guard, on the lookout for her, decade after decade; for centuries I waited. I was to be destined for something great by The Gods themselves. I felt proud and honored. But it never happened. Remember when I told you I became disheartened and left Godric and Europe to be on my own? That was why. After half a millennium of hoping and waiting, nothing happened. Frigg had stopped coming to me in my dreams. Since I never had any other dreams, I convinced myself I had imagined them and time continued to pass. Truthfully, I hadn't even thought of it in a long, long time. Until Dr. Ludwig told me this evening that you were she. And here we are. The dreams were real, Frigg spoke the truth and I found you." His tone was light, but we both knew this was pretty epic.

"Okaaayyy...But, what the hell does that mean about me? Who am I or what am I supposed to do? No pressure." I beat the steering wheel with my hand. "It's like everyone knows what's going on but me. Again." Eric was quiet while I had my pity party for myself. I just wished someone would give me a straight answer. What was I supposed to be doing? Was I wasting time, living a selfish existence on my current path? Shouldn't I be solving world problems? Instead of eating dinner and having alone time with Eric?

He finally spoke, very quietly but with a lecturing tone I had never heard from him before. "Sookie, every mythology, every religion has a hero that must endure a struggle to find their role, their purpose. You are on that path. No one knows what's ahead of them, immortal or mortal, human or supernatural. I know my part, now. But it took a thousand years to define it. Your journey might take as long; we don't know. But it must be significant if those currently in higher power are involved and if my role, assigned almost a thousand years ago, is to support and defend you. So, until you are enlightened, let it go. You won't know until you are meant to know."

I stopped the car at the valet station which was good timing because I was overwhelmed right then. Yet again, I was left with more questions than answers. He sandwiched both my hands in his, "Sookie, do not rack your brain with the information you _don't_ have, no matter how much you want to know. Right now, let us handle the things that are in the immediate future. We have Alberik back, thanks to you. Now we focus on Phaedra and Breandan. To shoot for anything further than that would be folly. A waste of energy and time."

I sighed. He was right. "Is that how you've survived for so long and not lost your mind?"

"That and my dashing good looks."

I gave him a weak smile. "So, now what?"

"You eat. We bond." He leered at me, whether in earnest or in an attempt to lighten my mood.

"I guess you enjoyed eating here the other day?" We were at the same place we came on our date.

"It was the only place I knew of, honestly. It's fairly fast, quiet, close and it's Supe friendly."

"Are you in a hurry, Lover?" Of course that was all he took from that sentence.

"Yes. Would you prefer me to take all night eating?"

"No. I just like to hear you say you can't wait to get me alone."

As we got out, loud enough for the valet to hear, because I know he loved it when I proudly lay claim to him, "Eric, if it were up to me, we'd never leave the bedroom." Then I winked at him. The look I received in response made the verbal PDA worth it.

He pulled me in close, to wind his arm around my waist while we walked in, "If we didn't have serious things to talk about and your energy to replenish, I would be following through on my statement about winking."

"Oh, I see." He insisted on checking out the other diners, to make sure there were no other vampires there. No vamps tonight. Waiting for our table, apparently Eric's presence indicated we got the same primo booth from last time, I stifled a laugh as I saw Skank, the bitch waitress that coveted my boyfriend. She looked momentarily thrilled when she saw Eric, then immediately disgusted when she saw me. At that I couldn't hold my snicker in. Rather, I didn't really try. I laughed right at her, in fact. I saw that yellow flash in her eyes that weres get before they shift, and I caught the stray thought of her strangling me with her bare hands, then walking away with my vampire.

I looked her square in the eyes, and with no forethought, pushed myself in to her brain. I showed her an image of her beaten body, laying on the ground. I was stepping on her throat, my sword pushed up against her heart. Her eyes widened in fear and she looked at me, terrified. I nodded once to let her know I had done it. She almost dropped her tray on her sprint to get away from me. Needless to say, she wasn't our waitress tonight.

Eric looked at me strangely, aware something had passed between us, but not what. Once we were seated and I had ordered food, "Okay, Sookie, what happened there, with that waitress?"

I looked at him wide eyed and innocent, "What ever do you mean?"

He chuckled, "You're a bad liar."

"I just laid claim to what was mine, Lover." I crooned his own pet name back at him and squeezed his leg under the table.

"I like where this is headed. Tell me more." I told him what I had done and he was impressed but I tried to shrug it off. "Sookie, don't dismiss it so readily. She was a were, not just a human. The fact that you could influence her is proof of your increasing power. We need to experiment more with this."

"We'll squeeze it in somewhere after we work with swords." He narrowed his eyes at me, fully aware I was trying to distract him with the more appealing task of the two.

I changed the subject. "So, what do you think the chances are we could get audience with The Council?"

"I will place a few calls. It is likely they will send a representative out to speak with us first, to deem us worthy of an audience. But it may be best to see if Dr. Ludwig can tell us what happened with her visit with them, first. We may need to see where this Phaedra business goes, first."

I nodded. A comfortable silence passed between us for a few minutes. "You are quieter than usual, Sookie. I know there is much to absorb but try to remember what I said about not driving yourself crazy with thoughts you have no answer to."

"It's not that, actually. I was just thinking, I want my grandfather to look me in the eyes and tell me what he knows. Even if he just said 'There are things I can't tell you right now, but I know you have a purpose.' Just to restore my faith that he has my best interests at heart."

"That still falls under the category of things to yet be revealed." He grabbed my hand and held it to his lips. "Sookie, trust me. Stop analyzing and planning. I appreciate that you like being prepared and knowing everything but sometimes you can't. So stop. Look at me. We are feeding you, we are going home and then we are finishing our bond." He gave me a look that could have melted stone.

I sighed, closed my eyes and gave myself a pep talk. He is right. Cool it. Obsessing won't change a thing. Enjoy this night with Eric. Enjoy the bonding. Dr. Ludwig said things were never going to be quiet so make the most of those moments when you can. I opened my eyes and he was still giving me that look. I leaned in and kissed his lips, "Thank you."

He cocked his head in question. "For calming me down when I get all spazzy."

He laughed, "Spazzy? Is that what you call that?" I nodded as the food arrived. I hadn't realized how hungry I was. After a battle over fork dominance-Eric wanted to feed me again-I won, but only after I told him I wanted to just hurry up and eat so we could leave. He watched me shovel it all in, in no way repulsed. I made him describe, in detail his dreams of Frigg and any details of me. There was never a vision of me or any description, just Frigg telling him about me. That he was to care for me, protect me and he was to bond me to him, as together we were meant for many important things. I was shocked that he never told a soul, even Godric, about his dreams. "There are things a person keeps to himself." Ah, private vampire stuff. Okay. I finished up quickly, much to Eric's delight. I was feeling a little jittery and he must have sensed it. Was I that obvious, or was it because we could feel each others' feelings? Hmm. On our way out, he rubbed my back, he leaned into my ear, "Don't worry, Lover, I'll be gentle."

"Ha. Smart ass"

"You like it."

I ignored that. He scared the valet away with a look, as he took the door from him, to hold it for me while I slid in. Once he was in and we took off, "I'm not nervous. I just feel like this is it. This is a huge moment; we'll be bonded for...forever."

He looked at me and smiled so sweet, it made my heart do a flip flop, "Yes. Finally." And just like that, the conviction, joy and relief in his tone turned any misgivings I had off like a switch. I turned in my seat and reached my head across the armrest to lay on his shoulder and we drove the rest of the way in silence.

When we arrived at what I deemed now as "our cabin", though I owned no part of it, it just seemed like our home, he had me sit on the couch and close my eyes. I could hear him coming and going from the room, things moving around. When he told me to open them a minute later, I gasped. He had turned off all the lights but illuminated the living room with a half dozen large candles. He had brought all the blankets and skins down from the bedroom and lay them on the floor in front of the fireplace, which had a fire blazing. He was bare chested. It was so romantic, so thoughtful. I was speechless. He was kneeling in front of me, between my legs. Gulp. I was a very, very lucky girl.

"Sookie, are you ready to bond to me?"

I nodded, "Yes. Are you ready to bond to me?"

His eyes were burning into mine and his fangs slid down. "I have been ready for centuries." He leaned in and kissed me, very gently at first, but it quickly heated up. He slid his hand up to my shoulders, working my cardigan off my shoulders before I even realized it. Breaking our kiss, he squeezed my waist, licking and nibbling his way down my neck, across my collarbone then to the tops of my breasts. My eyes slid closed of their own accord, my head rolled back on my shoulders and I held onto him for dear life. This was going to be good.

The air got thick around us and bright light filled the darkness of my closed eyes. I laughed to myself-He was literally drawing my magic out of me.

Wait, no he wasn't. I didn't feel it inside, so it couldn't be from me. I really was seeing light through my lids. My eyes snapped open and I saw the light shining brightly right in front of us, then it winked out as my cousin's shape formed and solidified. She was wearing Fairy clothing. Fuck. Me.

"Sookie! You must come with me right now! Grandfather wants to speak with you. He has spoken with Ludwig and The Council. He is summoning you, come now!" She had my shoulder and was trying to pull me out of Eric's grasp. I looked down at him, he still had his tight grip on my waist, still had his lips on the tops of my breasts, and was staring up at me in annoyance. He seemed frozen.

"Claudine! Wait-cripes, we were clearly in the middle of something. Can you give me two seconds to gather myself and talk to-"

"No! You have to come now, there is no time." She was pulling me down the length of the couch, out of the circle of his arms. She was stronger than I realized. Though Eric's hands dropped down once I was dragged from him, he still couldn't move and he was now staring back and forth between the two of us-he was livid. Not at me, just whatever was going on and the fact he was helpless to move. It was making me angry as well. Let us handle this like the adults we were, not dragging me along by my ear, like some petulant child. "Claudine, goddammit. I am coming! Now let go of me." I looked to Eric.

I felt sick and was shocked to feel a lump in my throat at having to leave him like this-in this manner. I looked at him apologetically, "Eric, I am so sorry. I will be back as quickly as possible. Please know that I am already trying to get back to you, okay? We have unfinished business here." I winked at him to lighten the awfulness of the situation.

Claudine looked at me and I saw guilt and sympathy momentarily flash across her face."Okay, good. Let's go!" She took my arm and I looked down at my semi-nude chest. As the air thickened again and her light built, I reached down to grab my sweater as a last second effort at modesty. As I grabbed my sweater, I felt the familiar pull of teleportation but I also felt something encircle the wrist that had reached for the sweater. I don't know if he just fought through whatever force had immobilized him or if Claudine's magic was now all wrapped up in popping us out of there. Whatever the cause for his sudden movement, Eric's hand gripped on to my wrist right as the light flashed and we disappeared. If I could have screamed, I would have.

A split second later and we were in my grandfather's chamber at the palace. Claudine, me and Eric.

A/N: Surprise. This is what I meant about my block. I had this sweet, romantic Lifetime movie mushy sex scene for their bonding all laid out and it just didn't sit right. So I had to muck it up. Love yooouuu...


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: And the plot thickens. Sorry, it did take me longer than I thought to post this, but I did have to do some research. The next chapter will be up soon, I promise, since it is half written. I love you, as always. You guys send me to the moon with the shit you come up with in your comments. Don't forget to go vote for your favorite AU fanfic, of which I am honored to be a nominee, for The Fangies! ****You can look at all the awards and contenders here: http(colon forward slash forward slash) (forward slash)fangiegdocs ****And vote here: http****(colon forward slash forward slash)**eSurv. org?u=Fangies2013

**Love and kisses and armpit sniffs. I have no Beta, I own no characters, except for mine.**

There were several sets of stunned eyes staring at the three of us: Niall, Claude, Celighn, Dr. Ludwig, even Kvelin. There was another person there I did not know-looked to be Demon to me, judging by the blue colored skin. We must have looked like a circus-Claudine's eyes bugging out of her head, screaming at Eric; and me, jumping around like a spider monkey- ripping a tapestry from the wall, then launching myself at him to cover up his body. Then there was Eric, who half sat, half lay on the floor, looking unfazed and, of course, smug. Until I attempted to smother him with the tapestry and my body, to shield him from the light. Then he began laughing. Uncontrollably. And didn't stop.

Celighn was the first to speak, in her thick brogue, "Always one to make an entrance, eh, Sookie?"

"Bah, hush! What in the holy hell is going on, here?!" I looked in each set of eyes, shooting daggers at them and demanding an answer.

"It looks to me like you're mounted atop a wiggly pack of puppies." She referenced Eric who was giggling so hard it was shaking me as I struggled to stay atop him with the fabric covering him.

I thought out loud, "I am taking him somewhere dark, somewhere safe. I can take him to my old room, right? The closet, maybe? Yes. I will be-"

"There is no need for that, Granddaughter. He is safe."

"How so? How do you know that?"

He smiled gently at me, "I have it on very good authority."

"Okaaaay. Well why is he giggling like a school boy?"

"He is under the effects of euphoria right now. It is an overload of fairy magic he has never felt in such high potency before."

"So, if I pull this fabric off of him, he will not burn? Despite it being full daytime and windows streaming with sunlight?" I stared hard at my grandfather, hoping he knew just how seriously I took Eric's health. Bond or no bond, he was mine. I didn't care what higher up, assuming the Demon stranger was someone of import, we offended by me popping us out of here. I was not letting him burn up. He took notice of the gravity in my eyes and smiled at me, almost proudly, which was puzzling.

He leaned to say something I didn't hear to Dr. Ludwig and she nodded and replied, "Yes, she has grown nicely possessive of him." I guess she didn't feel the need to whisper.

I heard Eric's muffled voice, still trembling with laughter, but calming some. "Sookie, I am fine. If I were going to burn, I would have already felt it on my feet and I do not." I looked down to see I had not done a good job of covering all of him. I rolled over to my side, next to him on the floor, still disbelieving he was completely safe. I kept him covered, but turned his face to me. His face was streaming with tears.

"You're sure?"

He laughed a bit more, "I am quite sure."

I grabbed his hand and slowly exposed it to the light and waited. Nothing. No screams, no bubbling or blackened flesh. Before I could test out more of his arm, he ripped the tapestry off, grabbed me up and flew us closer to the window. I gasped and pawed at him, trying to cover his chest up-it was too close to the fire for my comfort, but he grabbed my arms and held them to my sides. "See, Sookie, ssshhh, it's fine. I am fine." He held me and patted my hair, while I examined him closely for any signs of damage. He watched while I took his hand and put it in a beam of sunlight and nothing happened.

We were broken from our reverie by someone clearing their throat and we both turned.

My grandfather came forward and held his arms out to embrace me, though I had yet to peel myself from Eric. "Sookie, I swear to you, no harm will come to him. Now hug me, child. I have missed you." I tentatively let go of my Viking and stepped into his arms, and he held me to him tightly. I tersely hugged him back, unsure of what our presence here meant and quite frankly I was a little pissed at him. And he knew it. He pulled back and looked at me a little sadly, "We will talk and clear the air between us, I promise." He kissed my forehead and my anger melted. Addressing Eric, "Northman. Unusual circumstances, you being here, but you are welcome, as long as you refrain from killing anyone."

He shrugged. "I did not like Sookie being taken from me without warning. I sought to protect her, as I have been prophesied to do, as you must know by now. And rest assured, Your Highness, I feel no inclination whatsoever to drain anyone."

"Yes, Dr. Ludwig here has informed us of the unique circumstances surrounding your...relationship. Interesting, though it's the first of it's kind we know of, so there is much to be learned."

Celighn and Claude greeted me from afar, obviously hesitant to come close to Eric.

Kvelin had no reservations and came right up to us. I had never seen him armed to the hilt as he was now. The famous Britlingen armor, body forming, soft and black, covered him. He sported swords and daggers, bow and quiver on every available inch of his body. He would have hugged me, if I had not stepped back and grasped Eric's arm to my chest. I heard Eric's low growl and I can't say I blamed him. Another Supe that damn well knew the rules of propriety when it came to other Supe couples. It wasn't difficult; hands off. He cocked an eyebrow at me and I was taken with just how much he looked like Eric. How was it I could have practiced with him for years and never so much as been tempted, yet when I took one look at Eric, my panties ran for the hills?

"Kvelin. Nice to see you. This is Eric Northman, my soon-to-be-bonded." They both curtly nodded at each other, though judging by Kvelin's face, Eric must have given him a less than polite glare.

Not looking at me, but over my head to Eric, "Nice to see you safe, Sookie." He stepped back, to my grandfather's side, but never turned his back to us or tore his eyes from my vampire. Oh brother, here we go, like I had time for territorial pissing.

"Grandfather, how is Eric not burning up, right now?"

"I would prefer to answer that in a bit, Sookie. There are a few other things to talk about first."

I nodded. "Okay, so can I find out why we are here? What has happened? Is everything alright?"

My great-grandfather walked around to sit at his desk and everyone else sat as well. This reminded me when we were last here and he told me I would be leaving to infiltrate the jurisdiction of the Vampire whose arm I now protectively clung to. I stifled a laugh at that, sobering when I saw how much more tired my grandfather looked than he had only a few mere days ago. Did he have those furrows in his brow before?

"For the time, everything is quiet. Which is concerning in itself. As you know, we have been infiltrated on many levels, the most personally upsetting being Preston's betrayal. But, when Dr. Ludwig came to tell me about Phaedra, that set a much more dangerous tone to what had previously been a manageable bout of infighting among our own. Sookie, I summoned you here tonight to have you ask your vampire for help."

Eric snorted and I jumped up.

"Ah, there it is. A favor by force."

"I would not force either of you in to anything."

Pacing the room in an eerily similar fashion to the last time I was in his offices, it was my turn to snort. "Force, no. Mislead and smokescreen, yes." I stopped right in front of where he was seated behind his desk and looked down my nose at him.

He rose to his full height, which was many inches taller than me and got so close, I had to bend back some to look up at him. In a very steely tone and with a clenched jaw, "I have told you we will speak of our issues later. You will not throw one of your tantrums now. You will drop your smart talk. Immediately."

Gulp. I wasn't sure I had ever heard him take that tone with me before. It dawned on me and I almost facepalmed. We weren't just our little family here in this room. We had an outsider present and I was sassing him pretty good in front of them. Time to recover. "I am sorry, Your Highness, Grandfather. I meant you no disrespect. My emotions got away from me." I bowed my head in a contrite gesture. When I looked back up at him he had the slightest twinkle in his eye. He knew it was out of character for me to be so kowtowed, but at least I had some small amount of grace to make up for it quickly.

He patted my hand. "My goal was to merely tell you just how much trouble this Phaedra fool is, then ask you to implore Eric for his assistance."

I sat back down. "I am sorry Grandfather, continue on, before I interrupted you."

"Yes, well as you know, Dr. Ludwig informed The Council of Phaedra's interference immediately after your visit this evening. In turn, They sent Their representative, Gideon to me" the Demon gave a slight bow to me, "to discuss our options. The best idea we came up with was to see if Eric would get involved."

"Niall, what is it you think I can do, that you cannot?" Eric diplomatically asked, neither offering nor declining his help. "And with all due respect to Them, why doesn't The Council just summon her before Them?"

Gideon answered first. "We have summoned her. It is Our opinion she will not heed. She is too mad and feels she is under no higher authority. You are our backup plan."

"It is likely Phaedra has an interest in you. She kidnapped your brother, a vampire she would have no tie to or interest in, otherwise. She most likely has no interest in the Water Fairy, other than using them as a means to end. Her interest in us, unfortunately, stems from an encounter she had with our kind eons ago. We were fighting a faction of Dionysus' followers, maenads, for encroaching on our area. They destroyed hectares of our lands with a wave of their collective hands-scorching trees and earth for their huge bonfires, destroying sacred forests and meadows, contaminating rivers and brooks with waste and alcohol. In those times, we were guardians of the smaller woodland creatures-the elves, pixies, trolls and gnomes. With their debauchery and mistreatment of our land, they killed or injured hundreds of them. While Phaedra was not a maenad, she followed them, took part in their orgies, in a desperate attempt to associate herself with them. A few of the women snuck into our midst while the elders were distracted with battle and preyed upon the youngest of our flock. They were boys that were mere days into manhood, prime fairy men for fighting, protecting and breeding. They were there only to apprentice with the elders-clean and sharpen the weapons, care for our armor. We couldn't risk losing them in battle but we wanted them to see it. Two favorites, Kheelen and Nix were lured away with talk of sex, drunken orgies, wine and parties. They slaughtered them then displayed their disemboweled bodies on pikes, on the edges of our own land! Needless to say, retribution was swift and final. We did away with the group of them quickly. Only Phaedra survived because she turned into a snake and escaped. Fitting for her, I think. Now she wants her retribution."

"If she can change shape, what exactly is she?" Celighn asked what we were all thinking.

"She is a demi-god, though how strong her powers are is anyone's guess. It is believed, however, that to strengthen her magic, she practices witchcraft and calls upon the elements and old gods-Hecate, Dionysus, Astarte for increased power. She also has been known to keep Supernaturals as prisoners, for the purpose of drinking their blood; in her mind, absorbing their powers. Or, working some type of sorcery to take on their form-almost like necromancy. She has killed many a Demon, Fairy, Vampire, Were in this manner." Gideon answered.

Great-grandfather continued, "To answer your question, Eric, I feel she will listen to you, since she has a desire for you on whatever level. Whether it be romantically, or as a pawn to use against us, she obviously went through steps to find out who was important enough to you, to use as leverage. Knowing her thought process, she most likely thought, if Breandan could blackmail you into fighting with them, she could either woo you with false promises of ruling all of Faery or simply cast a spell over you, keeping you as a prisoner."

"This is not winning me over in your favor."

I got very anxious at my grandfather's words, but Eric, ever calm, rubbed my hands between his.

"This is where the bond comes in," Dr. Ludwig piped up. "Once you two bond, she will not be able to overtake your mind, your spirit, your anything, really. The magic involved infusing you two together will prevent it."

"Yes, but I imagine she could still kill him." I stated the obvious. No one challenged my theory. "So, I have a few questions. Why has The Council, with all respect, done nothing to stop Phaedra's madness? She sounds like a threat to everyone." I directed my question to the Demon.

"We try not to get involved in common problems we deem as minor. As you know, interfering can greatly alter the future against Fate's overall plan. Prior to now, she has threatened only small numbers or individual Supes. After the Maenad-Fairy War, she stuck with creating havoc with human religious groups and mostly stayed away from Our world. Now, she is involving both colonies of Fairies and in doing so has involved Vampires. And if the Vampires felt like it, would be justified in some type of retaliation. If it weren't for your involvement Sookie, we may not have known that this was a ploy on her part, and it may have started a three tier war."

Eric and my grandfather beamed at me with pride. Changing the subject, "How did you find this out so quickly, or did you already know and not tell us earlier? About the bond I mean, Dr. Ludwig, when you just found out about Phaedra?"

She looked offended. "Don't let the fancy title throw you off, girly. I do actually work, you know. When I alerted The Council, the Ancient Pythoness was brought in, to see the best path. She gave me the answers. Well, technically she gave me a riddle to solve, but I looked through a few ancient texts, did some quick research, and found out what I needed. I found a few other things that you need to know as well, and consulted with your great-grandfather. Same for you, Northman."

"Yes, we will get to that in a moment." Niall interrupted.

Cripes, what was so secretive he kept changing the subject or banning us from speaking of it, until later?

"So, if our bond is so important, why did you not let us bond, then tell us all of this?"

"Another question I will answer soon, I promise." Grrr, so he brought me, us here just to tell me he was going to answer all my questions later? Seems productive. I clenched my jaw and counted backwards from ten.

Eric, sweet, intuitive man he is, vocalized that question for me. "So, in order to answer _our_ questions, which are important, yet private in nature, you want to know if I will help, correct?"

Gideon spoke up again, "Mr. Northman, I believe it is my presence that is postponing your personal business. You are right. I only need an answer to our proposal and I will be gone in a flash." He smiled at me, with his multiple rows of pointy teeth, at his own humor. Demons are very, very quick. "Will you be helping us with Phaedra, if the need arises?"

"Yes. I will help."

"Excellent, I will tell The Council and They will be very pleased at the news. We will be indebted to you, as will the Fairies, I presume." Hmm, that was a powerful statement. "Your Highness" he bowed fully now to Niall, and all of us fairies in the room, "Doctor, Britlingen, Sheriff, again-many thanks." With that, he was gone, with nothing but a brisk breeze from his zippy departure.

Claudine finally spoke quietly, from across the room. "Yes, Eric, we will be indebted to you."

Eric nodded. "You understand my decision was based solely on how this affects Sookie?"

My grandfather flashed a sly smile at him, "Of course. Frankly, I don't care why you are helping, though it makes me happy you are willing to take such risk for the family of your Bonded. Very honorable. I have always thought you to be so. Especially for a vampire."

Eric smirked at him, unruffled by his words.

"It is fair to ask that you answer our questions, now? I have offered my assistance and we have waited long enough."

Niall cocked an eyebrow at him, "You know her so well, already." He turned to me, "You have done well with your patience my dear, I am sure the wait was eating you up."

Hahaha, laugh it up. Just get to the point.

"If you all would excuse us please, except for Dr. Ludwig. I would like to tell Sookie and her vampire what we know in private. If they elect to tell you what they learn, it is their choice." All the cousins filed out of the room. Claudine rubbed my shoulder on the way out, on the side opposite Eric. Kvelin stayed put and I shot him a look.

"I am here to protect The Prince. I won't be leaving. I assure you, Princess Sookie" Grrr. I saw Eric smirk, "Though we previously know each other in a more casual respect," now Eric was the one growling "I have been contracted to protect His Highness, so I am bound to complete secrecy." He had a look I had never seen from him-guess I had never seen his work face before.

Niall nodded his agreeance. "I will start from the beginning. You have been told you are fated, yes?" We both nodded dumbly, in anticipation. "Well, Dr. Ludwig has found family trees, lineage and manuscripts that give us a more detailed description of both of your bloodlines. None of which I was aware of. I knew of The Brigant family line, of course, as it relates back to the Early Days, but I could not even suspect that you two had ties as old as mine."

"Oh, hells bells, Your Highness, spit it out." He shot Dr. Ludwig daggers with his eyes, but she carried on anyway. "Sookie, you are descended from the Tuatha de Danann, the original deities of Ireland, specifically Danu. Eric, you are a Lochlann, a sworn protector of The Tuatha, specifically Danu and indirectly to Eriu and Brigid, all of whom have ties, generations later, to Sookie and The Brigants. Your ancestors protected Sookie's ancestors and it is why you are immune to the Sun here and why you two have been Fated."


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Whew! I feel like a birthed a twenty pound baby with this one. Too much info and yet it's probably my smallest chapter. But, The Bond is up next so better to get the business out of the way. All the mythological and folklore names used here are factual-they do exist in lore. However, I did not necessarily use them according to their true purpose, story line, etc. I used them to fit this story. So, yes, I realize that So-and-So didn't really do this or that. It is complete and utter poppycock. Weeee! That was a fun word. Oh and a special thank you to those who pointed out my boff last chapter-BlueAdelin, murgatroid-98 and "Guest" lol. I erroneously swapped names but have since fixed it. I am trying to get better about responding to reviews but I can't if you're not signed in. I love you all and your comments. I know I sound like a broken record, but the shit you guys say or guess at, regarding the future, is just too fun. You are the wind beneath my wings. Okay, as per usual-I own nothing but a few Eric look-alikes. I have no Beta so be patient with my word, punctuation, grammar fuckery. My peepers get all begoogled when I stare at this story for too long and my brain and eyes go on auto correct a lot, so I can't see the errors. But I worry using a beta might postpone how quick I can get the chapters posted. Wah, right? Pickle smooch.**

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Ch.31

As my Gran used to say, you could have heard a mouse fart. Eric and I stared at each other like we had never seen the other before. Looking each other up and down, with new...was it respect? for each other.

My grandfather looked pissed at her outburst. "Doctor, need I remind you of my position? And yours?"

She looked completely unaffected by his imperiousness. "Sorry, Your Highness, but do you deny time is of the essence here and the sooner they know everything, the sooner they can bond?"

He grunted, "No, but you will watch your tone."

"Yes, Sire." Her eyes contradicted her contrite tone. I liked the tiny old crone, we had a lot in common.

I rubbed my temples and leaned forward, Eric lightly rubbing my back. He spoke softly, mostly just to me, but the others could hear. "I did dream something like this, as a human, that support this."

"Like what?"

"To be honest, I don't recall very well. It was so long ago and I have lost many, non-essential details of my human life. What I can remember...a voyage to the Celtic Isles, whether Scotland or Ireland I don't know. In the dream, my father took me and two of my brothers..." He struggled to pull the memories from the deep recesses of his mind. Instinctively, with no conscious effort, I placed my hand on his and summoned my magic. The words suddenly began to pour out of him with ease.

"When we arrived, we were met by several women, and a man-they were all very fair, I remember thinking they looked so much like us, with their blonde or red hair and braids and the man's beard was adorned like our men often did during important ceremonies. But they were so ethereal, they had a glow about them. I couldn't grasp how unique that was at such a young age. I was possibly 5 or 6 years old at that time. The foreigners spoke a language to my father that I didn't understand at the time, but now I recognize it as Goidelic, or Gaelic Old Irish. I cannot recall the words now, as my young ears could not absorb words I didn't understand. Whatever they said, my father nodded and stepped back. The man of the group paced before the three of us, sizing us up. He never touched us, yet it felt like he was touching my head. Finally after apprising my brothers, he stopped and squatted in front of me. He said something I, again, did not understand, but they must have been kind words, because he mussed my hair and smiled and I thought it was the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. Our kind usually lost all their teeth by his age and his were perfect and bright white. One of the women of the group came forward-" Eric paused and looked at me, eyes wide as saucers, "Gods, Sookie, she looked so much like you!" I nodded, urging him on, hiding my alarm at how weird that was. "Her hand lit up and she touched me. The light went all through my body and it felt electric. Once the glow faded from me, she turned back to her people and nodded. In our language, she said to my father, 'This one. This boy is He." My father nodded, we got back on our vessel and sailed home. That was the end of the dream."

"Wow. Were there any other dreams?"

"There were many. I could fill a book with them, especially with you helping me recall them." He noticed that, I guess. "But I would rather sort through them all later." He gave me a meaningful look.

Egad, this was getting so weird.

"Okay, so my first question, Grandfather is why did you send me to Eric under the pretense of pumping him for information, or whatever, if you knew we were fated? Why wouldn't you tell me the truth?"

He looked at me sternly, "If you are completely honest with yourself, would you have liked the idea of being promised to someone you had never met?" Without waiting for an answer he went on. "If I had said, 'Sookie, you will now go into the arms of a _vampire_ that Fate has mandated you to', how would you have reacted? No need to answer, because I already know. You would have thrown an absolute fit, fought me kicking and screaming, then set your mind to hating him, so even if I managed to force a meeting, your mind would have been soured against him. It needed to happen on it's own, and it did, so I will not apologize for any necessary deception I took part in."

Oh. Ohhhh. I felt ashamed because he was right.

"That said, however, my concern was definitely not an act. I was very worried he would attack you and kill you the moment he met you. That is their nature. I didn't know about your heritage, as I do now. I had to deeply trust that Fate and the seeings of The Ancient Pythoness were true and that you were safe. But I did not know of your ancestral link until Dr. Ludwig told me a few hours ago. All I was told by The Council most recently, was that you two must be together at all cost. I chose to tell you what they had originally told me, upon Their permission for you to live in this realm: That you were to follow through on the promise I had made them. It was merely a half truth."

"What of that, Niall? What about my history and Sookie's kin tie us together?"

"I would like you to look over the book and manuscripts" he gestured to where they lay on the desk "for the particulars. There are things that are encoded in magic that only one who is meant to read it, can. Of what I have read, the gist is this: You two were supposed to meet, or predecessors of you, were to meet much earlier than now. Eric the dream you spoke of, remembering being a child and traveling to Our Mother Land was most likely correct. You were chosen as a Lochlann and at age 12 you were to be taken back to Eire. Once there, you would live as protector to Sookie's ancestor. But the petty meddling of man interfered, via war, and your father died in battle before you reached the proper age. That one event changed Fate's plan, setting off a series of other events. You were sent off on a voyage with your brothers; put on a ship that sailed through the Norwegian and Greenland Seas. They could not follow. The serpent that inhabited those seas hated our kind, mistrusted us, wanted us banished out of his oceans."

"The Jörmungandr. you know of that beast?" Eric shot up and paced, "Middengeard. That is Midgärd?! Norse mythology has a Midgärd!"

Niall smiled, "Yes, Eric, believe it or not there were many similarities of Our people and yours in those days. Lochlanns were Vikings who lived among Us, in Our lands, or frequenting back and forth. Our Gods mingled, many have names that are similar. They shared the lands in those times. It was the humans that came with their greed for land and hate of foreigners that drove a wall between Ours and many other deities all over the world. Middengeard was one of the many realms They shared, once They were no longer worshiped or summoned, where humans could not go."

Some parts of this were familiar. I was sure I had come across it in my hunger for every book in my grandfather's library.

"And so They waited. There was no rush, as Sookie's ancestor, to whom you were originally to guard, had not yet been born. As bad luck would have it, instead of returning, you then went to the New Country, which would now be Greenland and Canada. They had no knowledge of such a place and could not risk going to an unknown territory. You were gone for many years and when you finally did return, you were very much a man. However, now you had not been raised to the Lochlann ways, taught what it meant to be a guardian to The Great Ones. Your intended had just come of age, so there was still some hope of a match. While it was debated what to do, you were mortally wounded, then turned to your vampire form. All hope for you was lost. The Great Ones dismissed you. However, a few years later, Morrìgan herself came to Them and implored Them, that it must be you to guard Her Childe. So They kept up the watch on you, waiting for you to be ready. As a young vampire, you were everything that would be expected of one who had so recently been human, self-absorbed, narrow-minded and vain. In your defense you had never been told of your fate, so never had the awareness of anything, otherwise. Frigg was sent to you in dreams to prepare you and gauge your readiness. While all of that was going on, Morrìgan, and all the other Dé Danaan Elders were fading. Christianity took over Our lands. They would make appearances when called but their powers were weakened and They mostly resided among the Sidhe in Middengeard."

I looked around at the others. They were all fixed intently on Niall's words, like it was bedtime and we were being told a story. My grandfather must have sensed my waning attentions.

"Sookie, Morrìgan had many daughters. They were dispersed all throughout Eire. In fact wherever She came upon a great warrior in battle, She often would bear him child to pass on their ferocity to benefit the future tribes of the area. These women were always warriors who would bear arms and fight along their men. They would always bear daughters themselves, thereby passing along Morrìgan through the ages and throughout the Motherland. That is your history, Sookie. You are a direct descendant of The Great Morrìgan. This is why you were fated, this is why you are so much more powerful than a mere human, fairy mix should be. Technically, you are a halfling, but truly you are full Fae, given the human side of your lineage. This is a huge honor. Truth be told, you are just as worthy of this Royal Office, as any of us."

Everyone was quiet, once again. "I would never want that. Ever."

"I know, my dear. And I would never want it for you. You would hate this life. You are meant for much greater things."

I remembered all the times he used to call me his little warrior and how I was going to do big things when I grew up. I voiced my thoughts aloud to him and he smiled at me, in pride. "I always sensed it in you, Sookie."

Getting back to business, "So you see, Eric's fate as Lochlann to Morrìgan's offspring was never realized. Her Spirit and those of all the Dé Danaan faded from this world, so Eric was not needed to protect, until now. For whatever reason, though we have some suspicions, the prophecy is now coming to pass. Whether this was predicted by The Great Ones and Morrìgan herself, or Fate has now decided the time has come and it is why you two were brought together, finally. In some twisted way, you being turned to vampire actually fulfilled your fate, keeping you alive all these years."

"What reasons do you suspect, Niall?"

"The Water and Sky Fairy need to be brought to peace. In the Old Days, Morrìgan would oversee battles, deciding which warriors lived and which died. But She could also bring peace when it was in the best interests of both parties. She is One of Us-an Elder. She would not want Us fighting Ourselves into non-existence or such few numbers we retreat to Middengeard."

"Not to sound unappreciative of my heritage, Grandfather, but I am curious, why wouldn't Morrìgan appear to us Herself? Wouldn't that be more impressive and peace-inspiring than a halfling who claims to be of Her blood? And why can't She just defeat Phaedra herself, like with the blink of an eyeslash or something?"

"Firstly, what better way for a God or Goddess to see proof of Their greatness than to see that power perpetuated by Their descendant? It's like saying They are so powerful that Their descendants, so many generations and years removed, are powerful enough to still hold weight and influence. And, like most of The Great Ones, They choose not to be directly involved in this world anymore. So They watch and oversee and give a hand when They deem it so. It is probably She who spoke to The Council, who in turn, made me promise to offer you up, when you first came to this realm. I should have suspected something then. Secondly, it is often the Will of Fate that those of this world battle amongst themselves, unless all hope is gone, then the Gods intervene. There is great faith that you and Eric can defeat Phaedra without Her help. Besides, what greater insult is there, to one such as Phaedra, to be defeated by those of this world?"

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. "No pressure, right?" I half joked, trying to keep it light, since what I really wanted to do was to run screaming from the room.

All four sets of eyes looked at me in awe, but also pity. Yeah, I pitied me too. No one had an answer.

Eric came to stand in front of me and held both my hands in his, "The answer is inside of you, somewhere. You will find it. Or you may not know until the time is upon you. There is no way of knowing. Remember what I said to you about not over-thinking and grasping for answers that are not ready to be revealed to you?" I nodded and let a tear slip down my cheek. He knelt in front of me.

"That applies to this situation even more than we knew before. But you are not alone in this. I will help you any way I can. Whether it be by my sword, or my love." I held his head to my stomach in an embrace, while he held me around my waist, in reverence. The tears dripped from my cheeks onto his head. I felt so much-overwhelmed and burdened by all I had learned, yet touched by his pledge, and now, loved. So the tears just fell and I let them. I loved him. I couldn't speak right then so, with nary a thought, my magic came to me. I pushed my love to him through our embrace. Our bodies lit up ever so slightly. His neck snapped up to look up at me in wonder. A pleasant sense of electricity and sparks passed between us, like we had once experienced during sex. We both took notice, but didn't care right then about the electricity or what anyone else saw or thought. He knew of my love and I knew of his. I held his head to me and we stay like that for a moment, impervious to anyone around us. We were Fated and now I knew why. We were like two halves of each other. We supported each other, we had the same fight and passion. He definitely had a positive effect on me, as I did for him, like no other had ever done for either of us before. It dawned on me suddenly: We needed to bond. Now. We held each other's gaze, never breaking it as Eric stood up and nodded, knowing as well, that it was time.

I cleared my throat. "We will be leaving now. Do not disturb us." I wasn't sure where this authoritative tone was coming from. "We will let you know when The Bond is complete."

With that, Eric gave a single nod, letting me know he was ready. I summoned the book and manuscripts to me and held them in one arm. In the other, I held his waist tightly, more out of comfort than transportation purposes and popped us to my room in the Palace. Finally, we could bond.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: Without much further ado...your bonding scene. Sorry it took so long- too much work and RL blahblah. Thank you for your patience. You guys are awesome sauce. Thank you for your lovely reviews and welcome, welcome to readers who found this story through The Fangies-see shameless plug below. Make sure you get your booties over there and vote for somebody! No matter what the authors here may say, we all live for feedback of some kind and an award is the ultimate feedback. I own nothing, all characters are the property of Charlaine Harris, who is busy wrapping up our last book. Can I get a collective WAAAHHHHHH!? Please pardon any word poopery-I am fairly sick (just this cold/flu going around) and see double sometimes. Yay for medicine! Doesn't take away my symptoms, but I sure feel funny.**

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**Cue the sexy music...**

Ch. 32

The second we materialized in my chambers, he crushed my body to his. He was sniffling me all over-my hair my neck, my breasts.

I couldn't help but laugh, "I take it that means I still smell pretty good?"

I got a muffled response I assumed meant yes.

He began walking me backwards, toward the bed, though how he knew where it was, since he hadn't lifted his head from my body, was sheer talent. He said in between kisses and snuffling, "I can control it now, more easily. When we are alone, I like to let it consume me. We both enjoy it, I think."

"Mmm, I concur."

When the backs of my legs hit the bed, he tipped me back, cradling me and placed me on the bed, versus letting me flop onto it.

Laying himself over me, supporting his weight on his arms he stared at me, again giving me that look-like he was seeing me for the first time.

"What?"

"I feel like any moment, I might wake up and this will all be a dream. Some fantasy I've concocted while bored out of my mind sitting at Fangtasia."

"Awww..."

"To think one month, one week ago, I was doing just that-tolerating the ins and outs of daily existence, bored to tears, numb of life. And now, here I am, here we are. I am in full sunlight for the first time in a millennium and laying with this scrap of a woman", he teased me, but lovingly touched my cheek, " the most beautiful, powerful, wondrous creature I have ever had the fortune to meet."

I thought for a moment I saw his eyes well up, but it was gone as fast as I'd noticed it. Which was good, because I would have lost it if he had gotten teary.

"And here am I, with you. When I spent my lifetime telling myself I would not know love, did not need it,you proved me wrong. Thank you. I love you Eric." He opened his mouth but I placed a finger on his lips to stop him. He had already said it once. Let's be even on that front.

We both stared at each other for a moment, letting our mutual feelings cycle through us. Neither of us were the lovey-dovey types, and until the last hour or so, probably wouldn't have made such bold statements to each other about our love. But, like Dr. Ludwig said, why put it off? We knew how we felt, might as well own it and move forward. It would only make us stronger, more bonded. If I was honest with myself, I knew how I felt about him when we first had sex. I just denied it. It was the only reason I would have worked so hard to overcome his fairy madness. Sanity and common sense would have popped me right out of that situation. And he probably felt it, too. Why else would he have made such an effort to squelch it? His instinct would have had him drain me right then and there.

He leaned down to kiss me gently, more like rubbing his lips across mine. I let out a mewl and closed my eyes, enjoying the sensation. It felt good to finally feel him against me, kissing me. It seemed like eons since we had last been alone. After a few swipes and nibbles of his lips on mine, I realized, he wasn't being tender. He was teasing me. My eyes popped open and his were shining with mischief. But I felt an underlying sweetness, as well. Ah, he was letting me pick the pace. Poignant and sentimental or frisky and spirited?

I gave him his answer when I bit his lower lip and sucked it into my mouth. He growled and rolled himself over, pulling me on top of him. I pretended to pin his arms above his head, as if we didn't both know he could slip right out of my hold. I wiggled on him, and kissed a trail into his neck then gave him a significant bite. He pulled me back by my hair to stare up at me. He clicked his fangs down forcefully and I felt my heart rate zoom up in speed and felt a flood of warmth between my legs.

He had been about to say something else, but no doubt he heard and smelled my reaction to his fangs and he got that sexy and annoying cocky look of his. "I am the only vampire who not only has his own fairy, but one that becomes aroused at my fangs!" He gloated.

Before he could get too full of himself, "Of course. _You_ were made for _me_, don't forget. It's really no more remarkable than this" I emphasized by reaching between us and squeezing his hard length "arousing me."

He had the grace to know I was full of shit and threw his head back in unrestrained laughter. "Brat."

My retort turned into gasps and panting, as he flipped me over again, onto my back, and began mauling every inch of skin he came across. Now it was my hands that were pinned above me, though there was no wrenching free on my part. He lightly scraped his fangs down my neck to my chest. When he got to my shirt, keeping me pinned, he used one hand to rip my shirt and bra open down the middle. Continuing his downward path, he latched on to a nipple, somehow managing not to pierce the skin there, yet suckling them and scraping his fangs up and down the sensitive peaks at the same time. My legs instantly wrapped around his waist and he responded by slipping his free hand under my bottom and grinding into me. He switched breasts, performing the same amazing feats there.

I struggled against the hand that was pinning mine, "Let go please." He released his grip and my hands encircled his head, weaving my fingers through his hair and clutching him to my breast. He used his now free hand to palm my other breast. I impatiently gripped at his shoulders and dug my nails into his back. He looked up at me innocently, rubbing his chin back and forth tortuously across the nipple his mouth had just abandoned, "In a hurry, Sookie?"

Uhmm, duh. This had been a long time coming, whether a week in real time or centuries on a higher level. I looked him square in the eye, trying to push all the tumult of emotion I was feeling right then into him-desire, love, frustration. "I need you, Eric. Now." It worked. His eyes darkened and all traces of the smirk he had seconds ago, disappeared. He came up and crushed his lips to mine, tongues swirling and fighting for dominance. Running the tip of my tongue over a fang and suckling it, he groaned into my mouth, frozen in pleasure. For a second, I wished I had a pair, so I knew what it would feel like. I slid my hands down to his pants and began fumbling at his button and zipper. He took over and freed himself and shed his pants without skipping a beat. I switched fangs, assaulting the other one while I took his rigid, heavy length into my hand. I slid my hand up and down his skin, marveling at the velvety feel.

Though he was on top of me, he was at my mercy. If he had breath, he would have been holding it. Changing my grip from soft caresses, I began squeezing my hand along his shaft, my hand not fitting fully around his girth, so compensating by making a slight spiral motion. My other hand slid down to palm his balls and it must have spurred him into action. He slid his hand down to my pants and ripped them off, including panties, with as much ease as he had his own. He wasted no time and slid his cool fingers into my folds. I gasped out and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue into my mouth again. Ever so lightly, he slid his fingers over my nub and ever so slightly, he rubbed them in a circle pattern over it.

Now it was me who was frozen in pleasure. I tried to keep up my hand's ministrations on him, but couldn't. I had fallen prey to the sensation he was filling me with-the gentle suckling as he sucked my tongue into his mouth, the delicious torture of him rubbing circles against my clit with the heel of his palm, while sliding two fingers inside of me. I cried out into his mouth and opened my eyes to find him staring intently at me. "Watch me Sookie." He slid down my body to rest between my legs, never stopping the movement of his hand, merely replacing it with his mouth. Then using both hands, he slid them under my bottom to push my core up into his eager mouth. He continued the circling motions with his tongue, keeping his eyes on me. Something about the sight of that-him eyefucking me, while his mouth was latched on to the most private, sensitive part of me, almost pushed me over the edge.

But the other part of me that was hanging on by a thread prevailed. I wasn't going to let myself come until the moment of our bond. I set my resolve and propped myself up on my elbows. Then I felt his tongue slide up and down my folds and lap teasingly at my nub and I almost came undone again. I grit my teeth and before I could think too much about it, I grabbed his head to stop him. He looked up at me in surprise, then understanding. He knew what I was trying for and he knew why. He kissed his way back up to me, making a pit stop at my breasts, repeating his sweet tongue and fang torture from before. When he reached my neck, he scraped a fang across my jugular and it was all I could do not to grab his length and shove it into me right then and there.

I wrapped a leg around his and flipped him, so I could be on top. He chuckled at my surprise move and gave in, laying like a limp doll-well, most of him. I kissed each fang, then his lips. I nibbled along his jugular, lightly sucking the area I planned on biting soon. I nipped down his chest, down to the beyond sexy V of his abdomen, which I showed special attention. He had wound his fingers into my hair so I sped up to get to my intended target. Once his huge length was in front of me, I gave it the reverence it deserved. Sliding both hands along it's silky exterior, I palmed it, gliding my fingers lightly up and down. I increased my pressure around him slowly, moving my body down a little further so I had better access to his balls. Squeezing his shaft at a slow pace, I gently nuzzled him there, eliciting grunts and groans from him. After several minutes of what I hoped was torture for him, I slid back up a little. I kissed the tip, then slowly ran my tongue along his head, looking up at him. His head was back in ecstasy.

"Watch me, Eric." I saw him smile and then his eyes opened to do as instructed. Sure he was watching, I kept his gaze and slid him fully into my mouth, as much as I could take. His vision looked like it wavered a bit, as his eyes fought to not roll back in his head. I repeated it several times, each time trying to relax my jaw and throat to swallow more of him. What I couldn't reach, I squeezed with my hands and also paid homage to his balls, caressing and lightly squeezing them. On my last swallow, I felt his head swell inside my mouth and before I could react, he had pulled me off of him.

I made a noise of protest at stopping, but allowed him to place me on his lap. He was sitting up so I wrapped my legs around his hips. "Are you ready, Sookie?"

I tossed my hair back. "I am, Eric. Very."

"Would you like me to cut a spot for you or would you rather bite?"

I smiled devilishly at him and poised myself over his length. Leaning into his ear, "I think we both like it better when I bite. Don't you agree?" And I grabbed hold of him, running just his tip through the folds of my now dripping center.

He grabbed my hand off of him and pinned them both behind me, arching my hips and chest out. He licked at my taut nipples, right at his face level and leered up at me. "That's my Sookie, always playing with fire." I returned his challenging stare and answered the best way I could think of. I sat down on his length in one quick swift move. We both cried out and his hands instinctively let go of my wrists and grabbed on to my hips, holding me there while we enjoyed the sensation of being joined. My walls enveloping him in softness and warmth and his cock, filling me, owning me. He led our rhythm, sliding me up and down his length. His hands reached under my butt to spread me open and fit even more of him inside of me and to rub his pelvic bone up against my clit on the downward thrust.

I was helpless to change a thing, so I just held on. His mouth latched on to my breasts once again and I cried out and threw my head back, almost overwhelmed. His thrusts increased in force and I knew we were both close. "Mine." Slam. "You are mine, Sookie" Thrust. "Say it."

I picked my head up to look at him. Thrust. "Yes, ah!" Slam "I am yours, Eric."

Grind "And I am yours, Sookie." I felt that tell-tale winding up in my stomach, waves trying to wash over me. Thrust thrust thrust. "Sookie, ah. Are you ready?" I nodded and leaned into his neck, to my chosen spot, baring my neck on the opposite side to him for easy access. He slid me up and down a few more times for good measure, making sure to angle himself just right, in the way he had already learned would make me come instantly. As I felt my orgasm come crashing into me, I bit. The sweet, thick taste of his blood filled me, flooding my senses. He was a second behind me and I never felt his fangs, but I definitely felt his orgasm and feelings and presence come barreling through his blood. I felt my walls clenching around him, felt him swelling and pumping into me, felt my blood passing in to him and the pleasure he got from it's taste. I felt those sparkles of electricity that sometimes passed between us, very intensely now. All of that felt from both our perspectives; I let it wash over me. His wound began to heal so I bit again, almost drunk off the feelings and the taste of him. The bite, or the culmination of all he was feeling, like me, took him over as I felt him grow rigid inside of me again. He thrust deeply into me a few more times and we both came once more, crying out into each other's necks. I was mumbling something-I wasn't even sure what, and he was speaking his sexy native tongue.

His wound healed a second time and I begrudgingly did not reopen it, but lapped at the area. I felt him licking, to heal my wound and I giggled. I felt drugged. He pulled back to look at me and he too had a look of loopy joy on his face. We must have looked like quite a pair.

So it was quite a shock when we sensed a presence in the room. Turning our heads, we both saw it at the same time: a dark figure about ten feet away.


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Whew-sorry for the delay and thank you so much for your patience. I will cut this note short. You know the drill-I love you guys, thank you so much for all your comments, etc. I have no beta, I own nothing, except for the goofy lil characters I whittled up. You are the wind beneath my wings.**

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Ch. 33

Though he was surely still feeling the effects of our blood drunk euphoria, Eric jumped up, blocking me with his body, growling and muscles clenched, ready to attack. I teetered, trying to stand on the bed behind him and was just about to summon my sword, but then the figure started to waver in the air, becoming translucent. Before it did, I heard a familiar voice inside my head, not with my ears, "You have chosen. The scripts will tell you all", then it was gone.

An intense feeling of comfort and relaxation completely washed over me. And judging from the look on his face, Eric felt it as well. I sighed and leaned into him, as he lay us both back onto the bed. "Mmmm, do you feel that?"

"I do." He purred. We sat there in our collective puddle until the effects seemed to wear off a few minutes later. "Any idea who that was?"

The words were out of my mouth without a thought, "Morrìgan."

He turned his head sharply, "How do you know?"

"I-I don't know. I just do. Did you hear the voice in your head before She disappeared-that said we have chosen and the scripts will tell us all we need?"

He nodded but said nothing. "I'm not sure how I feel about her watching us have sex and bond. That's creepy. Though I don't get the feeling she was peeping on us the whole time."

"Don't forget, Sookie, Higher Beings don't look upon sex and mating as something dirty or kinky, or even private. Sex was had in public, among the Gods, among family for a very long time. It is only modern ideals that have retreated it to private bedrooms and made it seem unholy. Mating was often witnessed by whole families or villages to "seal the deal", so to speak. If anything, that is what She did just now-witnessed our bond, that we are finally fulfilling our roles."

"Hmm. Well, I can't change it, regardless, right?" I still felt a little violated at the prospect, but we had bigger fish to fry. "She said, 'the scripts'. I assume that means the manuscripts and book. I can only imagine what kind of info they contain. Let's take a look." I moved to get up, but he stopped me.

"Sookie, is there somewhere we could go outside and look at them? I would like to be in the sun again." He looked like he was trying to sound matter-of-fact, but I could see the underlying excitement in his eyes.

"I. Am. The biggest asshole. Ever." I facepalmed then looked up at him from under my hand. He was looking at me expectantly, clueless at my outburst. "Eric, I am so sorry! Here you haven't seen or felt sunlight in a thousand years, and I'm selfishly keeping you here, inside my chambers for the last few hours. Then gabbing on and on. Let's go to the garden-come on!" I hopped up and summoned a dress, slipping it on easily. I smoothed the shimmery, opaque fabric over my hips. I was not an overly girly girl in my fashion choices, but Fairy fabric was like no other. It felt like you were wearing nothing at all. Even my heavier workout gear felt weightless and fluid.

Eric stood up from the bed, staring at me, mouth agape and he sunk down in front of me. He didn't say anything for a moment, just giving me that same stare and I was getting a little uncomfortable. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing is the matter. You look like a goddess, Sookie. Stunning. You look of Frigg and Freya, Hera and Athena, Morrìgan all in one body. How I did not see it when you first came to me, I do not know. But I was a fool for not seeing it immediately."

I felt a blush creep over my cheeks. "Foof. I look like me-plain old Sookie. If you had come at me spouting stuff about me looking like a goddess when we first met, I would have been just a little freaked out. We weren't to know who we are to each other at that point, remember? No, it all happened as it was supposed to. But thank you for the compliment." I leaned down to kissed his cheek, pulling him up, then summoned some of Claude's clothing for him to wear outside. "Here try this on. Claude is the closest to your size. Well, technically, Kvelin is your same size, but I don't think it would go over so well if I summon his Brit armor for you."

"Yes, about _him_." he huffed as he slid on the pants, which were a decent fit, if not snug, much to my delight. I played innocent, knowing where this was headed,

"Hmm, who? Oh, Kvelin. What about him?" He tried the shirt on, but he couldn't quite button it, so shrugged and left it hanging open. Dear gods-he looked like a sexy pirate from a cheesy romance novel cover. I wanted to peel it right back off him, with my teeth. Gulp. Keep it together, Sook."How does that feel?"

"Extremely comfortable, despite being too small, but do not change the subject." He must have felt my state, as he looked at me sideways, then preened. "What is your relationship with the Britlingen?"

I fussed unnecessarily with his shirt, willing my hands not to undo his pants. "He trained me since adolescence. We have a student-teacher relationship and maybe a little sibling-like attitude thrown in, but nothing more."

"That's not the impression I get from him."

"Yes, well, that's his problem. I promise you, I have never felt anything even slightly romantic for him." I looked him square in the eyes. He grabbed my waist and pulled me in close. I felt every hard inch of him pressed up against me, thanks to our whisper-thin clothing, and I felt a tiny thrill at his possessiveness. I looked up at him sweetly, "Eric, I am yours and have been since birth, apparently. There has been no other before you, of that you have seen and felt" I rubbed my hips against his "the evidence. You have nothing to be jealous of", I kissed his neck and looked up at him. I felt his arousal at my words, then pride and love all coming at me, through our mingled blood. Cool. I closed my eyes and pushed my love and admiration to him. He seemed satisfied with that exchange. We better get out of here, before the exchange included more than just emotions. Clearing my throat, "Ready for the sun?"

His eyes lit up and he looked out towards the window in glee and anticipation. I summoned the scrolls and book, grabbed his hand and popped us outside.

We arrived exactly where I had intended, in a secluded spot among the roses and hanging vines. Eric looked around incredulously and while I still felt a nagging need to protect him from sunlight, he felt no such fear. I kept quiet and let him experience it how he chose. He was holding his hands and arms out, then took his shirt off to feel the warmth on his chest. I summoned a blanket and spread it out. Sitting down, I watched him walk to the roses and hold one in his hand, moving it around in the sunlight, then plucking it from it's stem. I could feel his joy and wonderment. He walked to the wisteria and buried his face in the blooms. He lay down on the grass, limbs splayed and just lay still, closing his eyes. After a minute, his eyes popped open and he came over to where I was on the blanket.

He traced the rose down my cheek and across my lips, then replaced it with his lips. "Thank you." He whispered huskily. He looked and felt so overjoyed, I felt myself misting up. What could I say to that?

So I said the first thing that popped in my head, "Anything for my Bonded." At that, he gave me a slanted smile. Then tackled me, tickling me mercilessly. Once the tears ran down the sides of my face and he deemed me sufficiently tortured, he lay on his back next to me and pulled me into his side.

"It will take time to get used to being in the sunlight. If only Pam could see it." Aww, poor Pammy. I wish she could experience it as well. "I know you have mentioned that time passes differently here. Is there a way to send message to Pamela, so she does not destroy all of Shreveport, if she finds us missing?"

"Uhhmm...I think I can arrange her receiving a message." I summoned pen and paper, had Eric write a note to Pam, since she would probably only believe it if it came from him, then sent it to Claudine with a note to see it got to Pam, ASAP. "She can pop in and out of the realm with ease, as you saw. Though, now that I think about it, I'm summoning things to and fro with barely a second thought, now. I used to have to work up to it, build up my energies. Now I just think it and it happens. Huh. I should try popping back and forth later. I wonder if it is your blood, or our bond that has given me more power."

"Possibly. Or, maybe full power has been given to you now that you know your true nature."

"Maybe it's in the books."

"Ah, yes. Let's read those."

Unrolling one of the manuscripts, the first thing I saw was what looked to be a genealogy account of the Brigants. From Danu to Brigid, the Brigants and Morrìgan went all the way back to the beginnings of Irelands ancient history, and probably even before that, judging by some of the gaps and crossovers on the page. By most entries, their were fancy f's and h's in parentheses, in what I assumed told whether the person listed was human or fae. The Brigant side, leading to Fintan all had f's; my Morrìgan heritage was spotted with h's. The tracking stopped at the mid-1800's, so I assumed it lead to my grandmother Adele, somehow. I wondered aloud if Fintan had been attracted to Adele because of her lineage, or if Morrìgan, or Fate had stepped in, to make the magic happen.

There were symbols at the bottom of the page I couldn't understand. Looking to Eric, "Have you seen this type of text before?"

"It looks similar to ancient runic symbols, but I do not understand it." I stared at it a bit longer, seeing if I could determine any type of pattern to it, but shrugged and moved on. The next manuscript was filled with miscellaneous drawings in no particular rhyme or reason. Celtic knots, swirls, a circle of monoliths on a hill-I ran my hand over the drawing, "Tamair".

Eric looked at me, "What?"

"Tamair. A very powerful place for the gods, and it's where this worship site once stood, but it's gone now." My hand flew over my mouth. Where the hell had that come from?! He said nothing, just watched me. I took a deep breath. "Okay, well this whole, me speaking without having a clue where it's coming from thing, is obviously going to keep happening so I should just get over it, huh? It's weird. It's not like someone is speaking through me, it's that I know the answers, somewhere in the deep recesses of my brain and they just come rushing out."

"It's possible we will see more and more of your knowledge come through as we learn more about your heritage." I nodded in agreement, wishing said knowledge would just hurry up already. I examined everything on the page and nothing else came over me. One thing struck me as odd, though.

"Eric, isn't this a Viking ship here?" Down at the very bottom corner was the iconic drawing of a longship, complete with serpent head and tail at the bow and stern. "Yes." We pondered that for a minute, with no conclusion.

Moving on to the book, I marveled at the cover. It was leather, hand-tooled with a lovely Celtic symbols and had metal corner edges and clasps. Inside was a page upon page of lovely script, written in many different hands, different colored inks, different languages, all adorned with illustrations and patterns that rivaled anything I had seen, even in Grandfather's library. It was stunning.

Eric looked over my shoulder, while I looked the pages over, not really trying to read any of them, just skimming them for anything that looked familiar and admiring them all. About three-quarters of the way back, I found a page that was very plain, but I recognized it as similar to Faery language, but there were a lot of words I did not know. I had a hunch it was Nissen, a type of half-Faery, half-Celtic mix I had encountered before. At least, that's what I was told when I asked Claudine what it was, when I found it in a book once. She said it was almost like a casual or slang way to write-it was quicker.

I looked at it more closely, picking out words I recognized. It seemed like a poem of some kind.

I read it out loud once, pronouncing even the words I didn't know, as best I could, and after sounding it out, I found I could understand a little more. It was about being shown...something one had already seen...but needed to see again, with new eyes? I repeated the lines again, more of it's words becoming clear. Going back to go forth and seeing all routes...? By the third pass, all the words were revealed to me mentally and I realized it was not a poem, but a spell!

Every magic practitioner knows, or damn well should, not to chant a spell you don't understand, let alone repeat it three times. But it was too late. I felt the pull of teleportation as the last word of the last line of the spell passed my lips. I didn't even have time to look up, since I was staring down at the book while reading. Damn.

The next thing my eyes registered was extreme darkness so different from the soft, filtered sunlight from a mere second ago. I switched into hyper aware mode. It was night, a bright moon, obscured with lots of quickly moving clouds. That meant it was was windy, though in my sheltered spot it was hard to tell. But it was definitely cold and damp. I was on my back, Eric was nowhere to be seen. I shot up to my feet, which felt exposed, as did my neck. My hair was high up on my head and covered with some type of bonnet . I was itchy, constricted and uncomfortable. I looked down to find very old-fashioned clothing-a heavy dress with many layers, some type of brocade belt, with matching trim and a heavy hood. This was definitely not modern garb-more like Middle Ages.

For fuck's sake! Only me, would this happen to. Was this a dream? I hoped, but I knew it wasn't. Well, no use in boo-hooing right now. Buck up and pay attention. There was no light, except for the occasional bit from the moon, peeking from behind the clouds. I heard some noise in the distance. I looked around and saw nothing but a wooded area. I slipped my hood over my head silently, grabbed the train of my ridiculous dress, cursing history and crouched into a thick part of the brush, hopefully out of sight. Whatever was on my feet, while completely impractical for the cold and wet ground, at least worked well for stealth.

I did a quick soundcheck of my powers. I reached out with my mind...yep. I found five humans and one void-Eric! I hoped anyway. The bond! I felt inward, trying to grasp for any emotion, any clue and got zilch. It was there, I felt his presence, rather, his existence, but it was very far off and I couldn't tell in which direction. Not like the night I tried to find the cabin-he felt much, much further, like in another country. Probably another time, I thought warily. I tried to summon my sword to me-nothing. I tried to summon the book-again, nothing. I ran through a few more personal things-picking smaller and more mundane items I thought might come to me and still nothing worked. I would have liked to test my teleportation but it was too risky. The sounds were coming closer, so I scanned outward again. It was the humans and the void. They were talking but quietly. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but it was definitely Scandinavian or Norse in nature. Okaaayyy...a clue. Was I in Eric's old country?

They were far enough off that I felt comfortable slipping in closer. I wove my way through the thicket until I was only about twenty feet away. I saw three of them, that meant the other two were around somewhere-I felt out with my mind to make sure they weren't about to come up on me. No, they were about fifty feet or so in the opposite direction. Probably peeing or something. I felt that void, but couldn't see it. I painfully, slowly crept through the brush until I found my target-there was Eric! He was tied to a tree on the very outskirts of the camp. And he was looking right at me. Thank god, finally I caught a break! I slowly edged closer. Thankfully, the tree line made an almost perfect circle around the area they chose to settle, so I could literally get quite close to him without being seen. The three men were focused on keeping up the fire, making a decent camp and weren't paying attention to Eric at all, which was fine with me. The other two men rejoined them and they sat down around the fire. When I got only a few feet from Eric, I could see him staring a hole right into me. But he wasn't looking at me normally. I smiled at him, to reassure him, then started to reach out to him, to untie him but something stopped me. Something was off. His pupils took up the entirety of his eyes, boring through me like he did not even know me. His fangs snapped down and he hissed at me, pulling and straining against his restraints. I felt a hand on my shoulder and I stifled a scream. I leaned back into the woods and turned quickly on my crouched knee, on guard. Before me, was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. It was Morrìgan.


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: Sooo...how you doin'? Oye, another delay, for which I apologize. I hate going a week between updates. I just find, I want to get this right. I don't want to slap a story together for the sake of an update, you know? Each character is speaking and hearing in the language they know. For obvious reason, I couldn't write the whole chapter in Old Norse. In other words, Eric speaks his language, Sookie hears English and vice versa. I just did the first few sentences for you to get the feel of the language. Hopefully I didn't butcher it too much, but I probably did. Also, the difference between Erik and Eric-the K indicates this, old version of Erik; the C is Sookie's Eric. It felt weird referencing the Eric from 500 years ago as Eric with a C, a modernized version of the name. And I was too lazy to use the more appropriate Eirikr, etc. So, Erik would be the familiar name of Eirikr, in my world. Anyway, thank you for your patience. As always, I love the reviews and comments and guesses. They keep me afloat. I have no beta, I own only the non-SVM characters (who we will be returning to soon, I promise). We need more Pammy and Alberik time. Please forgive me any mis-speaks, misspells, or other word farts. Anyhoo, anyone else's palms getting sweaty over the last book coming soon? Okay, thank you for reading, love and kisses. ^..^**

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Ch 34

Eric pulled free of his restraints and lunged toward me, just as Morrìgan pressed a finger to my lips, grabbed my hand and poofed us...somewhere.

I looked around to get my bearings. We were still in the woods, but we were much further from the camp. And up in a tree? I could hear the men yelling their alarm in the distance and it sounded about a mile or so off. Quickly she spoke, "You must listen quickly. He will be upon Us any second. Do not fight him. Trust him, as I once did. I could have easily killed him, but I did not. The bond will not allow him to truly harm you or kill you."

She disappeared as I was suddenly tackled from behind, whooshing from the tree top to the ground. I felt my breath leave me, the full weight of Eric's body, hard up against my back, pressing me into the ground. Boy, what a huge help She was. He yanked my hair back and he was snuffling up and down my exposed neck, pressing his teeth and his ginormously engorged length into my back. "Ek eiga ju nú, Færî!" (I have you now, Fairy!) Though his words were in his language, I understood them.

"Líka, neinn skaða mi! Ek elska þik, Erik!" (Please, do not harm me! I love you, Eric!) Neat, I was saying the words in my mind in English, but I was hearing them spoken by my mouth in Old Norse. Morrìgan _was_ helping. I wondered if she was somewhere watching.

His assault paused and I was flipped onto my back, his body and hands now pinning me in the front.

"You are a sorcerer, as well as a fairy?!" He hissed at me, fangs looming and huge. I pushed calm into him, unsure if it would work at this point, since he didn't seem to know me at all and our bond was null. "How do you call me by my familiar name?"

"Because I know you, Erik, and you know me. From another time. But believe me when I say you are my protector. And my Bonded. Though not in this lifetime-"

"Silence! You will not speak only to weave your spells on me!" He yanked my head to the side and struck, his fangs tearing into my flesh. It hurt like fuck and I did my best to stifle a yelp. Did that count as harm? It felt like it. The pain made it too hard to concentrate on summoning up any calm energies. While he did that, his hands were tearing my dress in two, right down the middle. He was grunting into my neck and thrusting himself into my crotch while rolling my breasts in his palms, surprisingly gently. In fact, once he had my blood, his whole demeanor had changed and his urgency had slowed. His grunts and growls had turned to moans. He was muttering something against me, I couldn't quite make out. He wasn't as rough, even his suction on my vein had softened and he had one hand behind my neck and the other in the small of my back. I caught a brief utterance, "Gods, what has your nectar done to me? I must surely have met my final death."

Forces beyond my control were actually making me aroused by his actions, after all, this was Eric, or Erik-his prowess was timeless, but increased a hundred fold at his words. "What type of creature are you? You cannot be a mere fairy, as I do not feel the pull of insanity in my blood. Yet this is the closest to ecstasy and madness I have ever felt. You must be a goddess " I must have made some type of sound signaling my pleasure, or he could smell my shift in emotion. He stopped drawing from my wounds and licked them to seal them, looking down at me in surprise and lust. "Oh yes, my little goddess fairy, give in. Enjoy what I am going to do to you. As much as I will enjoy it." He ran his hands over my naked breasts and down my stomach, then back up again. I involuntarily arched into his touch.

"And yet _you_ accuse _me_ of sorcery?" Embarrassed at my traitorous body, I joked. He looked down at me with the most strange expression-a mixture of humor, arousal and suspicion. I had forgotten myself-this wasn't my Eric, not yet. He might find my sarcasm odd, at this point in our relationship.

"You are not afraid of me? I am vampire. And you are fairy. I could drain and rape you in an instant."

"But you have not done either. Because our bond will not let you," I placed his hand over my heart. He looked at me in disbelief, then down at his hand. He clawed his hand and pressed his fingers in to my flesh, hard, as if he wanted to tear into my rib cage and pull out my heart. But he couldn't. Morrìgan was right, thank the gods, he couldn't harm me.

He looked at his hand again, pulling it from my flesh with a start, as if it had burned him. "You _are_ a sorceress!"

"No, Erik. At least, I don't think I am-" Suddenly human minds popped up on my radar. "Erik! We must go. The humans are coming! Fly us out of here, please."

Again, he looked at me as if I was a four-headed monster, but he didn't argue. In a flash, he scooped me to him and took off to the skies. Once I felt the whoosh, when we broke past the tree line, I squealed. He looked down at me, "You do not fear flying?"

"No. You have flown me before." He looked like he was pondering that and continued on his flight. I closed my eyes and leaned into him. I wondered what exactly was happening-was this going to be a dream or was this really happening in real time? If it was real, what was I doing here, in this time, before he knew me? What was I supposed to see? Was I supposed to accomplish something? I went round and round the spell I had read in my mind, but getting nowhere. After a few more minutes, we were landing.

When his feet touched the ground, he slid me down until I stood on my own. I looked around and gasped. The clouds had mostly cleared and the nearly full moon revealed what looked to be the most beautiful fjord. I had only seen pictures in books. I felt the night air hit my bare skin, where my dress was torn, so I clutched it together. Before I could look around too much, he pulled me to his side and we walked, read: he walked and I ran to keep up with his stride, to the edge of the water. He plunked me down on the sand and began to strip. The shirt came off in one tug, over his head and his bare chest was revealed and accented by the moonlight. Gulp. He untied his boots and slid them off. The pants he had on were loose, so slipped right off, as soon as he untied his crude belt. Of course he was wearing no underwear, even in this era. The pants pooled around his feet, revealing his splendor, fully erect and ready to go. Yep, that part was still my Eric. I swallowed back the drool that had formed in my mouth. When I realized he hadn't moved, I looked up to find him leering at me. "Do you enjoy what you see, Fairy?"

Rather than nod dumbly, as was my first instinct, I answered his question with a question, "What are you doing?"

"I need the water to clear my head from the spell you have put on me. And to wash the stench of the humans from my body. Join me?"

"Uhm, no thank you. It looks cold." He shrugged then swaggered to the water, revealing his butt to me. It took all my restraint not to latch on to him like a spider monkey, grab those cheeks and squeeze them. Or bite them. He swam agilely for a time, as I watched, though he never went far, keeping his eyes on me as well. It startled me when he called out to me, "Who and what are you, Fairy? Are you a goddess, as well? Or a sorceress? A trick or test of Loki?"

"I am a fairy, yes. But I am not a goddess, though I am descendant of one. And, it depends on your definition of sorcerer, to know if I am one or not. There are definitely magical things happening, that my usual fae powers do not include. Those powers may be increasing, allowing all of this to happen. But if you mean trickery via sorcery or Loki, then, no." I wanted to say more, but I wasn't sure how much I could or should say at this point. I had always heard you could alter things in the future by affecting the past. Did that rule apply here? I didn't think I would have been put here, if it would affect things in the negative. "My name is Sookie." He was suddenly over me, hair soaking wet, dripping on me, his face mere inches from mine. As always, it took great effort not to get lost in the depth of his blue eyes.

"You already know my name, Sookie." He said my name thickly and with effort, the sound foreign to him. "That is a strange name. Are all names like this in the time you come from, if I am to believe what you say?"

I smiled at him, and braved to cup his face with my hand. "No, mine is just especially unusual." A range of emotions flashed in his eyes, but he clamped down on them. He forced a blank look and removed my hand from his cheek, holding it to my side. I tried not to feel hurt and reminded myself this was the Erik of the past, not the Eric of my time. He would have to be very mistrusting to survive. "What can I say or do to make you trust me? I am not here to harm or trick you." I threw caution to the wind, but I couldn't stand him not trusting me. "In fact, I have no clue why I am here. Maybe I am to see who you were before we met? I don't know and hope I find out soon and then I will tell you. What would you have me do to prove myself? Give you more of my blood? Give you sex-my flesh?"

"Fairy, that is a dangerous question you ask me, given our positions. In fact, you are very trusting of me. Why?"

"I have already told you, we are bonded in another lifetime. We are mates, fated and you are my protector. I trust you implicitly. You have already seen proof of your inability to cause me harm. Our bond will not allow it."

That pissed him off apparently, as the fangs came out in full force and he growled, "Are you that naive, or are you a simpleton? As if you could not bewitch your blood to poison me, or be-spell me with the pleasures of your body! You may be a fool, Fairy, but I am not! I could kill you with barely the blink of an eye."

Okay, now he was pissing me off. Wary was one thing, thick-headed and mean was another. I looked him squarely in the eye, pressing my forehead to his, "If it's more proof you need, please, try again." I wrenched one hand free of his and pulled his head into my neck, "Try it-Drain me, then." I felt his hesitation, yet his body's desire, so evidently pressed against my stomach. "Do it, kill me, drain me dry!" Nothing. Fine. I bit down hard into the spot between his neck and shoulder. I drank down a mouthful of his sweet, thick blood and I unexpectedly, because I was so mad, felt it right down in my lady bits. He cried out and bit into my neck and I felt my essence flow into him. Immediately, our bond was opened and I could feel everything he felt-pleasure, shock, horror, mistrust, confusion. He cried out again and shuddered. I felt the coolness of his seed spill on to my stomach as he experienced the awesome sensation of a mutual blood share for the first time. As it was, I was fighting against my own orgasm, refusing to give in to it, wanting to prove my point to him.

But he surprised me, by flipping us, so I was on top of him and he impaled me on his full length in one thrust. So much for proving anything. I cried out as my orgasm was wrenched from me. He leaned me back, rocking me back and forth, pushing the torn dress from my shoulders. I looked down at him, my hair was no longer pinned and it fell down around my shoulders and the tops of my breasts, while he looked up at me in awe and reverence, "Mín guddina!" (My goddess) I smiled sweetly at him as he picked up his pace, moving my hips up and down his length. I had to give an internal giggle, leave it to us to turn some weird time travel spell into a hot sexcapade. Apparently, in his surprise, he did not seal my wounds as I felt and watched a trickle of blood make a trail down one breast. It did not escape his notice as he leaned up to lick the trail away. I gasped at the new depth of the sudden position change.

He looked up at me and gave me one of those cocky, my Eric looks. He leaned in to take a breast into his mouth. I growled at him and grabbed the back of his head, pulling him into me. He used his hands to move me faster on him and push himself deeper. "Bite me, Erik." He did as he was told and bit down on my nipple. The vibrations of him moaning into my breast spurred me on, as I adjusted my legs on either side of him to take over. I leaned back a little, raising up on him so high, then sitting back down hard. We were both very close to coming, which we could both now feel, thanks to our re-established bond. He sealed the punctures on my nipple and licked his way up to my neck, where he hesitated and I could feel a slight apprehension in him. He wanted to say something, but couldn't. I had a feeling I knew the source of that apprehension, so I took a gamble and bit his neck.

I immediately felt several things: extreme satisfaction, letting me know that was the source-he wanted me to bite him, but wasn't sure how to ask, I felt him slide his fangs gently in to my neck, and both of our climaxes hitting us at the same time. It was overwhelming and heavenly and right. After we had both come back down and I had caught my breath, he untangled us. He lay me down on top my dress, and lay by my side, covering the top of my body with his arm and leg. "Now do you see?"

"Lover, you have my permission to prove me wrong this way every time we disagree." I snorted. "In fact, I think I will disagree with you on everything."

I could do little more than giggle, since my whole body was jello. After a moment, "Erik, how were you captured by those men? You weren't bound by silver and I know they did not overpower you."

He smirked and puffed his chest out, "I allowed them to capture me. They did not know my true nature. They thought I was alone, a trader, traveling between villages. They robbed me and planned to sell me in to slavery. I allowed them to think it, so I could drain them at my leisure, away from the main path. I like the chase." Ah. "Now, you answer questions. When is this other time you are from?"

"Probably about 500 hundred years from now." He laughed, then got serious, when he realized I wasn't joking. He still regarded me with suspicion but was too curious not to ask more. "I avoid my final death for that long?"

"Oh, yes. And you do it quite well." I did not want to tell him anything too specific. "You are a highly regarded, powerful vampire and hold an esteemed position."

He puffed up at that. "And you? You are someone of power when we meet and I take you as mine?"

I laughed out loud at that one. "Yes and no. We are fated so it kind of happened for us. You do not 'take' me. We are equals. You have dreams of Frigg telling you you have been chosen, that you are meant for great things, correct? Well, I am what or who Frigg is speaking about-you are meant to be my guardian, a Lochlann in my language." His mouth fell open and mistrust flashed across his face. Before he could accuse me of sorcery again, "Oh, stop it! You yourself told me this and that no one else knew, not even your maker, Godric." I took his face in both my hands. "It's magic, Erik. The same magic that animates your body, is powering my presence, here. There is no evil afoot."

"No evil, My children. You are both far too important and too God-touched for any trickery."

He growled at the voice behind us and tossed me behind him like a rag doll. How gallant. I was glad to know he refined that a bit in the years to come. I had to peer around his head to see it was Morrìgan.

"Identify yourself, Witch."

"Erik, tread lightly, please. She is Morrìgan. The goddess I spoke of, that I am descendant from."

I put my hand on him, hoping it would protect him, if he pissed Her off. She stepped from the trees and slid her hood back to reveal her stunning beauty. While I wasn't trying to be vain, I could see the resemblance between us. It was the eyes and mouth.

"I mean you no harm, Lochlann Erik." She turned her palm toward him and he immediately relaxed. "It is good to see you two get along so well, any time you are brought together." She laughed, and it sounded like music. I blushed.

She turned to me and spoke our native Fairy tongue. "Sookie, Siohbán, my childe. I am very proud of you. You are strong, fierce and would have made a fine fighter in My time. I hope you approve of the choice I made for you, in choosing the Viking." I nodded, too gobsmacked to speak. "I had intended you to see this moment in a vision, but you speaking My old spell made it happen in actuality. You are more powerful than you know. You have My blood, let it flow through you and embrace it and your powers will surpass all those around you. Simply speaking or wishing something may give results, so use caution. But do not tell anyone other than your Lochlann of these powers, as it is his blood that has helped increase your power as well. Take his blood often. It gives you physical strength and increases your bond. A need will arise, sooner than I would have liked, for you to use your powers. But do not hesitate to do what is best for Our people, Siohbán."

"What about this moment did you want me to see, Máthair?" (Mother)

"The moment when I met Our Lochlann."

"Sorry, come again? Met him, I thought you personally chose him as a child?"

"I did. I made a point to keep a watchful eye on him, through the years. I was watching him and came upon him just as you did a few hours ago. He lunged at Me, caught Me, yet did not drain Me. We had sex, but he did not rape Me. Most of what you just experienced, was what I experienced. It was how I knew he was special and must still remain claimed for you. My experience with him made Me plead to Our Great Ones to keep him for you. He was meant for Us."

I had to count backwards from ten, not to launch myself at Her and rip open her throat with my bare hands. She had sex with MY Eric?! She must have sensed my anger and jealousy. She smiled, touched my cheek and all the fight left me. "That's my Siohbán, protective. When will you realize, We are one in the same? Do not be jealous of Me, for I am you." I wasn't sure how I felt about that, but I couldn't really argue. "No, childe. I wanted you to see this moment, not to make you jealous, but to see him as I did, to see just how special he truly is. That he could resist harming you, his Fated, is not nearly as remarkable as him resisting the urge to harm Me. Though I could have killed him with a glance, I saw his gift. He is not just a vampire, not just brave and remarkably intelligent-he has something more." She seemed like she was going to say more, but stopped. "Come, The Council is summoning you, on your plane. No doubt they bore witness to your bond and need to speak to the two of you."

"Oh, so that wasn't you in my chambers, earlier, right after our bond?"

"No, I try not to step into that realm, unless absolutely necessary. It is very taxing. The lack of faith in The Great Ones drains so much energy." She seemed sad. "In fact, if I need to speak with you, I will often draw you to another time or dimension, to do so. Hurry, you must go." She took my hand and I cast one glance back to Erik and he was staring between the two of us, with a confused look on his face. Eventhough he wasn't mine, I couldn't resist, the feelings were still there. "Goodbye, Erik. I love you, keep me in your thoughts." I wondered if he would remember this or if She would wipe this from his memory. With that she kissed each cheek, then my forehead. I heard the "pop" and I opened my eyes.

I was lying on the grass in my favorite spot in the gardens and Eric was shaking me, "Sookie, wake up." I looked up at him, so happy to be back. I threw my arms around him in a big hug.

He laughed, "As much as I would like to cash in on this affection, we have to go. The Council has summoned us." Damn.


End file.
